


The Purple Veil

by Brazendale



Category: Southern Vampire Mysteries - Charlaine Harris, True Blood
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-06
Updated: 2014-05-03
Packaged: 2018-01-14 18:24:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 73,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1276348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brazendale/pseuds/Brazendale
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written in 2011 but never before published in its entirety, this is a little war time adventure set in the exotic locale of a different time and place, where Bill will find the remnants of his humanity to be his greatest ally.</p><p>Mankind has always wondered where we come from and how we came about. In this story Bill ponders the same questions, what are the origins of Vampires, setting out on a quest to seek the truth, the very origin from which Vampiredom started. </p><p>Abandon your preconceived ideas and take a journey back through time accompanying Bill as he seeks out and finds the truth and knowledge that is to change his life and his destiny.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

‘Do you have a tuxedo, actually I think I prefer if you wear a white dinner jacket, come to think of it?’ George asked. ‘Yes, I have both. Whatever you require it won’t be a problem,’ Bill replied. ‘When can you start?’ ‘That means I have the job?’ Bill questioned, ‘I can start immediately if you need.’ ‘Tomorrow night will do. I assume you have the proper papers Britisher?’ George queried. ‘Papers won’t be a problem and yes, I am English, will that be a problem?’ ‘Not if you have papers,’ he replied, nodding his head as if to finish the deal. ‘Now go out, enjoy yourself tonight. Tell Claude at the bar that the drinks are on the house, you are staff now and don’t pay.’ ‘Thanks anyway but I don’t drink,’ Bill coolly replied. ‘You Britishers and your cups of tea,’ George laughed derisively, ‘now go, I am busy,’ he said, ushering Bill out.

Bill walked out of the office and back towards the bar. It was getting crowded with the usual assortment of patrons that flocked to the popular night club. People of all nationalities and all walks of life generally, sooner or later, found their way to the Purple Veil Club. It was the place to go, to be seen at and to meet others with the same interests or needs, those normally being fake passports to America or anywhere in the world that was safe. With the war raging in Europe and now the Pacific, was there anywhere safe these days? For Bill, living with the constant threat of exposure, he thought it ironical that for once he was probably safer than he had been in years.

He had found the perfect cover and a regular food supply all at the same time. As the piano player at The Purple Veil for his cover, his nocturnal wonderings were less likely to be noticed and even if he was stopped after curfew, his papers were in order or at the very worst, he could resort to glamouring those French gendarmes that were overly vigilant with their questioning. All in all, life was not too bad at the moment despite the state of the world and if sitting out the war in Morocco was going to be the worst of it, then he didn’t find that too great an inconvenience. He could of course always go back to the States, back home to Louisiana, but he had heard that Lorena had not unusually found her way to New Orleans and so that was the last place that he really wanted to be anywhere near.

So here he was, biding his time and existing. It could be a lot worse. After finally making the break with Lorena, Bill had wandered the world living as best he could. Financially he was a lot better off than most humans in that he didn’t really need to work if he chose not to. He had a substantial property portfolio in England and Europe that he had set up in the late eighteen hundreds and was reaping the rewards of investing for the long haul. Properties bought in and around the once squalid areas of London were now, even though under the constant attacks from the Luftwaffe during the Blitz, they were still of considerable value. Eventually he had found his way back to England, there was something comforting about the place. He almost looked on it as his home; he felt its sense of history and conservatism. In some ways he supposed, it reminded him of his human life, the one that Lorena had so cruelly robbed him of. There was a certain elegance that went hand in hand with the traditions and values of the English way of life. It was only half a lie when he had told George he was British because half of his heart he felt, belonged to England now.

He sighed, perhaps he was just being fanciful thinking of England like that but he did miss it. He missed the rich green fields and hills shimmering with a silver grey glow of the moonlight. He missed the cool soft misty rain on a crisp cold night and more than anything, he missed the polite gentle manners where your life was your own and people were too polite to ask questions, after all it was simply not done to delve into another person’s life in polite society.

So how did Bill end up in French Morocco, Marrakech to be precise, I hear you ask? As I have said, Bill had substantial properties but not just in England, he also had holdings in France amongst others, and it was these properties that had taken him to Paris where, unexpectedly he had lingered longer than he had anticipated and consequently, he had ended up being not the only foreign alien to be detained by the invasion forces. Bill however, was a lot luckier than some of those unfortunates who met a quite different fate, Bill glamoured his way out of his predicament. The down side to it all was he could not get back to England no matter how hard he tried. His options, like thousands of others at that time, were limited, and not being one to sit back and wait for true death to come to him, he called in a few favours that were owing to him and ended up here in Morocco.

He wasn’t entirely dissatisfied with his lot in life at that particular moment in time. He now had this job and was safe and he was finding that the climate was not as unappealing as he had anticipated. He was slowly coming to appreciate the place. The medina with the hustling of the Souqs during the evenings were a mysterious pleasure to him with the small alley ways that twisted into an unfathomable maze of narrow passage ways, twisting and turning until all sense of direction was lost to all but the local inhabitants or, as in Bill’s case, a night creature looking for concealment for his more nocturnal pursuits.

The smells of the spices and the heady aroma of the exotic perfumes mingled with the Moroccan wind – the Chergui or Sharq, as the wind was known **,** blown across the desert from the east of the Sahara where it could turn the desert into a boiling sea of sand, ferociously hot during the day and bitingly cold during the night hours, all mixing into a combination that intoxicated his delicate vampire senses and left him reeling.

He loved too the view of the Atlas Mountains with North Africa’s highest peak, Jebel Toubkal, that he had climbed by moonlight. From his window the mountains darker shapes of shade drifted on the horizon like the silhouette of a sleeping giant, lying on the edge of the world, stretched out in sleep until the end of time. He had always been a practical creature but there was something about this place that assaulted his senses and awakened the poetic and the erotic side of his nature, it was more than the overwhelming clash of cultures, Europe meets Islam, it was the charm of the people. They cared not for the petty wars of the foreigners, they had a history of thousands of years, what care did they have for this war that was but a grain of sand in time, when for thousands of years there had been battles fought for the same reasons as always, greed and power and stupidity.

The men were men here but ah, the women, now they were intriguing to Bill. He denies that he is old fashioned, he claims to be conservative but friends, he admits that he still finds the layers of petticoats worn at the time of his human life to be of attraction and so, the Moroccan ladies with their burkahs and their glimpses of hennaed hands and faces beneath their veils, their almond shaped eyes of obsidian black demurely cast downwards, yes he has admitted to me that he has felt an arousal towards these unobtainable spectres and understands the almost fanatical male obsession with their woman. If I did not know better I would think that he was a possessive creature, a man that once he has fallen in love, he will love for his whole life time or eternity, whichever comes first.  

Now I hear you suddenly wondering who I am. What have I to do with Bill and why am I telling this tale? All in good time my friends, all in good time. Be content right now to know that I have come to know Bill on his little mid eastern jaunt and that my part in this tale is not yet to be told, have patience it will come with time. But now we are more concerned with Bill and his new position at the club and why, after I have told you that Bill is a creature of considerable means, why would he choose to work at all? Well friends, it comes down to this, he was lonely.

Although it had been his choice to finally rid himself of the shackles of Lorena, it did not mean that he did not miss company, he had after all been by her side for many years since being turned. In fact the whole of his vampire existence up until when he gained his freedom had been spent at her beck and call. They had been inseparable, she with her obsessive desires for him on all levels and he, well as he told me himself, he had no other life. He could not go back to his family even if they were still alive, that was impossible. Lorena had held him in her powers using her sex and debauchery to corrupt his young vampire mind. Put simply, Bill had not had the confidence or will power to strike out on his own so he had stayed and endured until it became so unbearable with its suffocating decay that the true death seemed like the only relief to his tortured mind.

But just as a dog that is whipped and beaten will lie down to take more time after time, one day it will be too much and it will turn upon its master and that is what happened with Bill. It wasn’t just a matter of boredom or monotony, he himself has told me that half the time he was bored to death with Lorena but the other half he spent terrified, no it was more than that. He simply wanted to be part of living again or as much as he possibly could be. He wanted to live a normal life, he missed his humanity deeply and he missed the normal interaction of a human relationship. He wanted to mainstream as he put it.

Lorena had scoffed and belittled him and that was the final straw. With all the dignity that he could muster they parted, and although he did not wish her harm, that was not his nature with her or anyone, he did not wish to ever see her again. So he had wandered through his greener pastures and now he lingered in the barren wastelands that time has changed little. He has often told me that it seemed some how fitting that he should be here, where time matters little as life has gone on here much the same as it always has, flowing with the wind. That is how he sees his existence now, not in hours or days, or even months or years, but in decades and centuries, stretching out before him like the desert, always there, never changing but constantly evolving.

It has changed him this place, this oasis. He is more philosophical now, more poetic. I tell him it is this place with its undefinable nuances that has this effect on everyone who comes here, your eyes are opened to the colours, and everything is more here. You are forced to accept the realities of time here too, and time is something that Bill has plenty of. He has many life times ahead of him, when we are gone I tell him, only his kind and the Sphinx will remember us and he laughs and holds my hand and tells me not to be sad, he will always remember me. I look at him with his lapis lazuli eyes and doubt very much if I am to be more than a grain of sand in the desert of his life and I wonder with sadness if he is speaking the truth or just saying it to be kind, but only time will tell and time is my enemy not Bill’s.

But I have rushed ahead friends and told you things that you should not be hearing yet, it is not the present or the future that you wish to hear me tell you, it is the past and it is Bill’s story, although I do play a part in it. So once again we will return to that night when George the Greek Cypriot, owner of The Purple Veil, first gave the ‘Britisher’ a job as a piano player and Bill has wandered over to stand and talk to Claude the Parisian bar tender, and talk of the crowd and the patrons and the coming of events that will change lives and alter destinies, including his own.

 


	2. Chapter 2

‘What can I get you?’ Claude Renauld the Parisian barman asked with his heavy French accent as Bill sat down on the bar stool strategically placed to give a view of the club, including the entrance, tabled areas and dance floor. ‘Just a mineral water thanks,’ Bill replied casually. Claude shrugged, these British he was thinking, so stuffy with their tastes still, he knew that George had hired this dark haired handsome man to be the new entertainer and he also knew that the women would love him. He would bring the ladies in droves so that, he thought, would make him a valuable friend to have around. Claude was very lonely you see.

‘My name is Claude, you are Monsieur Bill is that right?’ he questioned in a friendly manner. ‘Bill Compton, please just call me Bill.’ ‘So Bill, what brings you here to Marrakech?’ Claude asked curious as to why someone with Bill’s looks and quality would be here of all places. ‘My health, I came here for the waters,’ Bill replied with a small crease of the lips, trying to resist a grin. Bill was a movie buff. He loved watching anything and everything, his fascination going back right to the start of the fledgling industry during those other war years and like everyone else, he had loved the latest hit movie Casablanca, so he just couldn’t resist quoting one of Bogie’s famous lines.

‘Waters, but there are no waters here, we are in the middle of a desert,’ Claude replied puzzled. ‘I know, I was mistaken,’ Bill chuckled. The blank look on Claude’s face wiped the smile from Bill’s; obviously Claude was not a movie fan. Bill sighed. ‘Do you speak French?’ Claude asked suddenly, studying Bill with attention, ‘you have been to France if I am not mistaken?’ he quietly observed. ‘I have been to France yes, and speak only a little I am afraid,’ Bill cautiously replied. Any reminders of his French speaking days with Lorena were not a welcome topic. 

‘Oh Monsieur Bill, do not be alarmed,’ he said noticing the closed reaction from his new acquaintance, ‘I merely noticed the cologne that you are wearing, it is a particular favourite of mine and can only be bought in Paris. The scent of it reminded me of ….of my wife Kceniya that is all. She had given it to me as a gift for our last anniversary and it bought back so much, so many …memories,’ Claude said, his voice cracking and tears springing to his eyes. ‘She is no longer…?’ Bill asked gently, not wishing to go on with his train of thought. ‘No, Paris was taken on the fourteenth of June in nineteen forty; she was rounded up as a suspected underground member several months later. I have not seen her since but I know, I know in my heart you see,’ he trailed off. ‘I am sorry for your loss Claude, there are many such stories now and all of them sad.’ Bill said with feeling. 

Bill felt the other man’s pain; he too knew what it was like to lose a wife and children. Even though his loss was under different circumstances, he had always felt that he was a casualty of war. Had it not been for the war, the civil war he thought, he would not have been likely to have met Lorena and his life would have played out as it was meant to be. 

In an act of compassion that was unusual for Bill at that time, he reached across the bar and sympathetically patted Claude’s hand. ‘Bill,’ Claude exclaimed, ‘are you well, your hand is like ice?’ Bill kicked himself, his genuine sympathy for the other man had been spontaneous and without thinking he had offered the most human of reactions, a sympathetic touch. Carried away by the moment, and completely forgetting that he was not human and did not have the warm blooded feel to him of the living, he knew that he had made a grave error. 

Just as Bill was about to respond with a quickly thought out excuse, there was a commotion near the entrance to the club that thankfully caused a distraction and Bill was able to excuse himself to wander off to a small table on the outer fringes of the room where he sat down in the semi shadows to observe all the comings and goings in the club and ponder on why he had felt so moved by Claude that he had made such a blunder. 

He was normally so much more cautious, so on his guard and rarely, if ever, touched anyone. Actually that was not the truth, those he did touch he touched on his nocturnal wanderings, normally glamouring his victims into forgetting their encounter with him but in this instance, of course, that was out of the question. Perhaps that was it, deep down underneath it all Bill craved to touch, to feel, to interact like a normal person, to do the most normal thing in the world, to offer comfort to a fellow human in need. 

Yes, Bill thought to himself, he touched others but not on a human level. Since leaving Lorena and attempting to mainstream, he touched others when he was feeding, but that was different. There was no love in the relationship with your food source other than being grateful to find a victim that would provide sustenance. It was not a warm and caring spiritual or philosophical relationship, it was a necessity and even though he no longer committed the barbaric atrocities Lorena had so enjoyed, he gained no pleasure from the act itself.

He gained no pleasure from the few sexual encounters he had either. He has told me that although once he had separated from his maker he did have sex with his victims, he glamoured all memory of this away too. He was not proud of these encounters, he did not enjoy them but he needed them, he was after all a male creature and it was also a part of the ancient feeding ritual and part of his very being, but he has emphasised there was no passion, no connection and none of what he hungered for so much and not had since departing his human life, there was no love. 

He did not need to tell me this, I knew with my heart how starving he was for some care and warmth in his life, to be held in the arms of a lover, is there anything in this world or others that can make one feel as safe, cared for and wanted? I think not and so Bill fed, seduced and glamoured all with no feeling other than revulsion for his situation and no satisfaction. Living but not living, searching for something that he was yet to find.

He shook himself out of his brown study and back to reality, observing that whatever the commotion had been, it had involved a small group of ladies who apparently had reserved a table but had discovered it was for the wrong night. 

Raoul the maître de had explained that they would need to return tomorrow as the club was too crowded tonight and advised it would be to their benefit as there would be a new entertainer commencing, generously offering drinks on the house and a table close to the performer to appease them. The group left happily enough and things quietened down once again or as much as it could in a club of this sort. 

After some time sitting and watching, Bill called it a night and left to return to his lodgings, navigating his way carefully through the narrow ways until he came to his home. He had arranged for the purchase a building in the old quarter, away from the hustle and bustle of the more European area, preferring the anonymity of the old stone buildings with their large ornately carved wooden double doors and thick cool stone walls. He had been delighted with the place. From the outside there was nothing to look at, no distinguishing features that would set it apart from any number its neighbours, but the inside, oh he had done wonders with the inside. 

As I have said, he had begun to embrace the nature and the culture of the place so it was no surprise that he had decorated it to suit his environment. The main living area was a kaleidoscope of rich tapestries in the Berber fashion and was only out matched for colour by the piles of rainbow coloured silk cushions scattered throughout the room. The jewelled carpets of many hues completed the cacophony of riotous hues assaulting your eyes upon entering. Pockets of emerald palms pooled in the corners of the room, providing an oasis of green and the two deep purple velvet couches invited you to lay prostrate with wonder at the whole scene.

From the arched double doors of the room opposite to the entrance, you were cunningly lured outside into a courtyard by the delicate tinkling of water flowing in the central fountain with its multi coloured intricately pattern tiles. Surrounded on all sides by deep shaded verandas housing yet more luxuriously appointed day beds and the obligatory cane furniture left as a reminder of the previous owner’s tribute to colonialism, it was a haven from the world, a place of lingering tranquillity and peace.

Bill loved this space and many nights after finishing at the club, feeding well on his way home, he spent his hours sitting here in the moonlight reading one of his many beloved books, his favourite of the moment very fittingly being One Thousand and One Nights. He loved the main theme of Scheherazade and her husband the fictional Persian ruler Shahryār, the stories she recounted epitomized the experience of wonder in those ancient times. 

He was overjoyed with the light tight room he had created out of the underground cellar beneath the house, no doubt normally used to keep food stores cool. He could picture the huge clay jars and the pots of another time filled with grain, almonds and besan flour, the sealed ampoules of oil used for cooking, the aromatic spices hanging in bunches to dry next to the mortar and pestle waiting to grind them into one of the many pastes used for flavouring the stewed meats that were cooked slowly in a tagine over the charcoal burners. Unleavened flat breads would be lying like huge saucers on the stone benches that were long gone, next to the baskets of dates, pomegranates and honey pots all laid out in Bill’s mind, like a window into the past. The thick stone walls and lack of windows made the perfect place for him to go to ground without fear. He felt safe here. 

He sat for some time that night in the cool courtyard, shadows casting bizarre patterns of their own across the beautifully designed mosaic floor tiling, creating a mandala within a mandala. He did not read that night, he was content to sit and listen to the night noises, the small sounds that only his vampire hearing would be aware of. In the far off distance he heard some small child crying while nearer by a dog barked in a warning to his master of a stranger passing close by. 

He told me he had sat there thinking of Claude Renauld and his Ukrainian émigré wife Kceniya and he had been filled with the sadness of his plight. He knew that what Claude was suffering Caroline, his beloved wife, must have felt too. To know in your heart but to never be sure was such a cruel trick of fate. What must she have endured believing him to have met his death during the dying days of the war? 

Of course like Claude she would never have ever really known what had happened; there would be no letter or telegram of condolence from a sincere well-meaning company commander praising the ‘valour and gallantry of one of the South’s finest’. No, he thought bitterly, she would not even have been able to shed tears of sorrow over the name of a far off battlefield reported to have claimed his life, nor had a body to mourn over, and to bury. All she was left with were her memories and a memorial headstone as a tribute to him.

He dreamt that night, as he did on other such nights of melancholy, a dream that was recurring and disturbing. It was always the same, it never varied and he always awoke in the evening heavy hearted and disturbed. Bill told me he would suddenly find himself standing on the front lawn of his family home, uniform ragged, hungry and exhausted. He would look towards the front of the house and his heart would burst for joy at seeing his beloved Caroline with little Thomas and Sarah on the porch. The boy would look up and see his Papa, squealing with delight at the first instance of recognition before leaping down the front steps and running as fast as his small legs could carry him towards him. 

But Bill could not move. As hard as he tried his limbs were like a dead weight mired in a thick black tar, sucking him down. With the effort of a dying man he would manage to move a step but it took a life time and all the while Thomas, followed by Sarah now, would be running to him but never reaching him. He struggled on, never giving up until dusk, when suddenly he would find his legs free to move but the children were no longer in sight. With one last effort, before exhaustion would finally take him, he would reach the veranda seeking Caroline standing in the shadows, staggering up the front steps to the comfort of her outstretched arms and the safety of her bosom.

With eyes closed in a pray of thanks, he would hold her before reaching down to meet her lips, hungering for the soft warmth and tenderness of her mouth, her peach like soft skin against his face and her silky hair cascading through his fingers. But suddenly as dreams often do, it would change. He would feel the sharp sting of brutal fangs puncturing his neck and a vice like grip to his body. Struggling to free himself he would stagger to break away from the horror that darkened his mind and then, as the moon broke through the scurrying clouds, he would behold this spectre of death, this hideous creature of darkness, this evil incarnate and Lorena would stand before him laughing as his humanity slipped away.

He would wake panting, although he did not breathe, his pillow stained red from the tears shed for his long gone life and loved ones. It never changed and it always haunted him. That day was no different to any other when he had dreamt his dream. He got up and did all the usual things that he does, he was a methodical creature in his own way. With vampire speed he completed all the chores that he liked to think helped to keep him human. He did not think why he chose to keep the place neat or clean as he never had visitors, he just did these things for himself and to give himself reassurance that he was not like other creatures of the night, and definitely not like he had been with Lorena. 

He dressed with a little extra care this evening as it would be his first night at the club and although he cared little for impressions, he had always been what he liked to consider a sharp dresser. That was perhaps the only thing that he had to thank Lorena for. She had given him a sense of style that he had not previously had any need for, he was after all just a southern farmer like any other farmer who only wore their ‘best clothes’ to church on Sundays or for weddings, christenings or funerals. When he had been turned he was in uniform and so in desperate need of new clothes. It had not taken Lorena long to acquire some for him. He was after all her progeny and she was so besotted with his beauty, his morality and his demeanour, that recreating him into a new being to suit her fashionable tastes and ideals, well it was something of a passion to her and one that she taught him well. 

He was hungry. The dream always left him hungry. He despised the way it made him feel like a newly made creature where nothing will assuage the hunger or the lust. But he was older now and had learnt how to control his needs and he was determined to never again be the creature he had been in the past. He knew that he would never be able to make up for his past deeds but he would not contribute to any further debauchery of innocents, he promised himself. He would feed later, after leaving the club he would find some person returning late to their home after a visit to friends or lovers. He knew there was no fear that he would go hungry, that was one thing about Marrakech that he loved, it was populated with others who enjoyed the pleasures of the cool night air after the long hot days.

And so Bill left his home and made his way to the club for his first night entertaining the patrons. He was not nervous, he did not get nervous, he was what I told him laughingly a ‘cool customer,’ but he was excited. He loved the thought of finally living as close as he could to a normal life and funnily enough, he loved to play and sing and he was so good at it. As George the club owner had been rather vague about what exactly was required of him, Bill simply sat at the piano and played and occasionally sang, if the mood took him. 

He had a wide repertoire of songs from all the years of his life but he chose to concentrate on hits from the last few decades. He loved the Englishman Ivor Novello and sang I Can Give You the Starlight and The Land of Might Have Been in his clear melodious voice but he also included other favourites of his, having a penchant for Fred Astaire movies. He included many of the songs that had made the movies a hit such as Anything Goes, Top Hat and Cheek to Cheek. He finished his first set with the ever popular I’ve Got You under My Skin to much applause, particularly appreciated from the table of ladies who had caused the commotion the night before and were now sitting in pride of place next to the miniscule dance floor and the piano. 

The ladies of the group had sat mesmerised as he played, watching his hands as they delicately caressed the keys, his light strokes teasing the notes and bringing delight to all.   
As he had finished his first set one of the ladies had timidly approached him. He smiled as a way of a greeting and she smiled back, her face lighting up with a natural beauty that made her eyes sparkle.

‘Hello, I was wondering if I could request a song,’ she said shyly with what he thought may have been a Swedish accent. ‘Sure, what would you like me to play for you? I am just going on a break but if you are here for the night I will make sure to play it for you a little later,’ Bill responded kindly, his eyes twinkling, attempting to put this beautiful woman at ease. ‘Could you play Night and Day?’ she asked, her cheeks flaming as she gazed into the bluest eyes she had ever seen. 

Bill liked the look of this shy young woman and found her softly spoken voice with its faint lilt to it to be appealing. He did not have a conniving bone in his body but looking at her he did think that it would be a nice way to finish off his evening after the club by spending some time with her, he was like Claude the barman, he too was lonely. 

‘I will make sure to play it for you. May I ask your name so I can dedicate it to you?’ his charming smile melting her heart. ‘Oh thank you, that would be …’ she was a little lost for words, ‘you are so kind. My name is Zuzana,’ she smiled again. ‘Well Zuzana, I will make sure that I remember that. Perhaps if you are not doing anything after I finish tonight you would care to join me for a drink?’ he said persuasively. ‘Thank you, that would be very nice,’ she replied as she blushed and smiled at him adoringly. 

Bill told me later of his first night playing at the club and of Zuzana. She was here in Marrakech running a charity for the care of displaced émigrés who had fled the horrors of Europe, barely escaping with their lives intact, their hopes for a future somewhere in a safer place was all they had to keep them going. He spoke with the highest of regard for all the good works that she did and of her generous heart and of the difference she made to all those she came in contact with. 

Her memories of the night at the club and the events after were all of a wonderful experience with a handsome man, who had paid some attention to her and had treated her with care and respect only. Any other memories having been glamoured out of her mind for her own sake with perhaps a little more compassion than usual, this lovely caring soul with her zeal for life and tender hearted humanitarian ways had moved him deeply. But this is not Zuzana’s story and again I have digressed. This is Bill’s story and we must move on.


	3. Chapter 3

Bill had quickly settled into a routine since commencing work at the club. His days of course he spent gone to ground but his nights, after finishing work, would be his own. At times he would walk the maze of intricately winding alleyways, always on the lookout for a lone person to feed from and glamour but after the night he had spent with Zuzana, he felt even more the loneliness of his existence. Instead of giving him some respite from the endless emptiness in his life, his brief encounter had only increased his longing for companionship and added to his guilt for such exploitation of one that was so sincere.

However, things were to unexpectedly change for Bill and sooner than he thought. It was one night three weeks later that he was on his way home when, passing a small narrow passage, he was stopped by a hand reaching out from the inky shadows to grab his arm. Bill instantly froze to the spot, unwilling to bear his fangs as would be his normal defence in case this was some late night gendarme on patrol requiring papers. ‘Guillaume’ the voice from the darkness seemed to hiss at him. ‘Guillaume it is me, it is your old friend Heinrich, come do you not know me after all these years or do you choose not to do so my friend?’ The older creature said to him in a more normal voice, as he stepped from the shadows, still holding Bill’s arm firmly in his grip.

Bill took a moment before answering, deciding the wisest decision to make. Would it do any good to deny his identity? He thought not, after all he was not dealing with a human here but with a vampire and a vampire older than himself at that. He nodded his acknowledgement to his old acquaintance and relaxed a little. ‘Guillaume it has been years, not since Paris in the early twenties,’ the other creature said jovially. ‘Tell me, how is Lorena and where are you two staying?’

Bill opened his mouth to speak but hesitated. Heinrich saw the hesitation and his eyebrows rose as he realised that all was not perhaps as it had been. Releasing the grip on Bill’s arm, he patted him on his back in rather a fatherly manner saying, ‘I understand my friend, I had wondered many times in the past how long it would be before you parted company. Lorena could be, how shall I put it,’ he hesitated now, unsure how candid to be not knowing the situation, ‘she could be a little suffocating shall we say?’ 

Bill relaxed a little more as he stood looking at the older vampire, although to look at, it would have been difficult to discern who was the older of the two. Heinrich had been turned when he was twenty eight years of age in human years. He looked a little older than his twenty seven years but times in the seventeen hundreds were harder, even harder than they were in Bill’s human era, with an average life expectancy of forty seven years of age so that in his late twenties when turned, he was considered middle aged.

He had been born in Austria but his family had moved to France, an ally at the time, when he was a child and when old enough he had become a monk, devoting himself to God and all good works. For Heinrich, while his intentions were strong, his flesh was weak and more often than not he would steal away from the monastery to visit the brothels and indulge himself in the pleasures of the flesh.

It was on one such occasion that the elderly woman owner of the brothel took a fancy to the younger man and for his sins Heinrich’s not so pious human life met its end at the hands of the vampire madam. For the rest of his existence he was always the first to admit that his turning to darkness was no more than he deserved and that he held God to be in the right to punish him for his unworthiness.

While Heinrich was still with his maker he had met Lorena. She was a young prostitute plying her trade in the same whore house before she too was turned by a not so regular customer, so to speak. He came to know her well over the years but had not seen her for some time after she had left for America. He had heard that she was doing well for herself but it was not until he met up with her again in the twenties that through her, he met Guillaume – Guy, or if you prefer the anglicised names, William or just Bill.

The older vampire was dressed to fit his surroundings Bill noticed. His cream coloured linen suit was immaculately pressed and would have been exactly what one expected to see being worn by an entrepreneurial business man in exotic climbs. The Fez he wore jauntily at a rakish angle, matched in colour the cummerbund firmly secured around his small waist and was of a blood red hue. He had even added a matching red silk kerchief to the top pocket and the whole ensemble was finished off with a red carnation in his lapel, like a cherry on the top of a cake. Bill was somewhat alarmed at the little man’s oily looking appearance but he knew Heinrich to have a flair for the dramatic and always enjoyed making a fashion statement. 

‘So Guillaume, what is it that brings you to Marrakech? Come tell me, do you still have an interest in shall we say ….collecting, is that it?’ Heinrich asked amiably enough but with some curiosity. ‘Please, just call me Bill. Yes I still collect but that was not the reason I came here. I came here for the simple reason that I needed somewhere to go.’ Bill said plainly. ‘Oh, so it was like that was it?’ the older vampire nodded, he understood completely what was meant. It was not easy finding a safe haven in this world for creatures such as they, and Heinrich had spent much time, decades in fact, learning this the hard way. 

‘What brings you here? Have you settled here permanently now? I seem to remember you had a rather successful antiques business going in Paris, if I remember rightly. I take it that you are still in the same trade and have not changed?’ Bill enquired rather politely for an old friend. Heinrich immediately understood this too. Bill was being cautious, you never knew in the labyrinth of alleyways who stood lurking undetected but within hearing range. 

‘I travel the world now my dear friend and stay here and there as the mood takes me,’ his friend replied rather casually. For the moment I am enjoying the warmer climates, next week or next year …..who knows? But come, we should not be standing here; we should be enjoying the comfort of my salon. It is late so perhaps tomorrow night you will join me and we can talk of all these matters and catch up on the years in between?’ he said meaningfully, and with a flourish he produced a heavily embossed and perfumed large ornate business card from his billfold, hurriedly scribbling on the back. ‘What say we meet around nine o’clock,’ he enquired of Bill. ‘I am playing at The Purple Veil until it closes, so why don’t we make it around one, if that’s convenient for you?’ Bill replied pocketing the card. ‘One o’clock it is. Enjoy your evening Bill and I look forward to seeing you then.’

With that the two of them parted, each going in the opposite direction to the other and were both soon lost to sight in the shadows of the narrow thoroughfares. Arriving home, Bill quickly took the card out of his pocket and turning it over he read the cramped handwriting by the light of his lamp. ‘I am being watched. Please take care when you come. Do not get followed,’ it read. A hastily scribbled address in the old quarter not too far from Bill’s home was scrawled on the front. 

Well that explained Heinrich’s demeanour Bill thought, but whom and why would someone be watching him. Surely it could have nothing to do with Bill’s ongoing search, no it was just a coincidence he told himself, how could anyone find out, after all he had been searching in secrecy for years and nothing had ever come to light before so why would it now? He was just being paranoid he told himself. But still, it was a coincidence and Bill did not believe in coincidences or accidents, no something was not right here and he knew that sooner or later he would find out what.

The next night, as soon as he finished his sets at the club, he left and made his way to the address Heinrich had provided him with. The door was opened by a servant. Heinrich always lived well and with style. Bill was quick to note the place was just as ostentatiously decorated as its master, the formal hall into which he was shown was laid with black and white marble tiles, none of the regular terracotta or Berber influenced mosaics here. Large potted palms in brass tubs stood starkly in the corners providing a touch of greenery.

Along one wall an ornately carved black wood hall stand, complete with coat hooks and a mirror, stood adorned with a collection of its masters many favourite pieces of head apparel and a thick Persian rug provided a splash of colour in a pseudo Victorian tribute to the many gentlemen’s residences of Upper Belgravia. From the entrance hall he was led into a large living room, much larger than his own however, you would not know this as every available space contained some eye catching monument of some sort. 

If the décor was a reflection of the owner then Heinrich was even more flamboyant than Bill had come to realise. The room was a Hodge podge mixture of the antiquated, the colourful and the bizarre. Ancient artefacts stood next to African tribal statues. Anubis the Egyptian God of the Underworld and Keeper of the Gates stood side by side with a Zulu – warrior’s shield displayed on a stand. A chest of alabaster Canopic jars sat delicately perched on a wooden table inlaid with an Ivory mosaic, casually placed on a zebra skin rug as if in tribute to a long lost tribal warrior or perhaps some Anglo hunter, whichever was more appropriate and to the owner’s taste. 

A glass cabinet in one corner housed a display of what Bill thought looked like Egyptian embalming instruments. Any other visitor to the establishment may have fled seeing these, believing them to be used in some form of torture, but Bill’s passion was for all things ancient so he took no notice of the ancient mortician’s tools of the trade other than to recall how ironical that embalming methods had advanced markedly during the American Civil war. This was as a direct result of so many dying far from their homes and their families wishing them to be returned for burial. 

He had heard at the time that the Army Medical Corps had commissioned a doctor to embalm the corpses of dead Union officers and the military authorities had also permitted private embalmers to work in the military controlled areas and now, here he was on another continent, far from his home and years away from his human life, looking at these ancient tools used thousands of years ago to send the God Kings on their way to eternity and still yet another war was being fought. Nothing changes he thought sadly and nothing ever will.

A small glass case, one of a pair to the right of the cabinet, housed as fine a collection of Ushabti or Shabti as Bill had ever seen. The small figurines carved with care represented all walks of life and were part of the funerary figurines placed in Egyptian tombs amongst the grave goods, in case the unlucky corpse was asked to perform manual labour in the next life, so they moved onto the afterlife taking a miniature army of substitute workers with them. The figurine "answered" for the deceased person and performed all the routine chores of daily life for its master. 

The matching case to the left displayed what looked like a first edition beautifully illustrated large family bible sized book, carefully opened to display a particular page with its ornate hand painted scenes. To describe it as a book does not do it justice for it was much more, it was spectacular. The intricacies of the text, each opening paragraph commencing with a highly embellished and richly drawn letter, simply left you breathless at the beauty of it. Bill stood looking at it for some time marvelling at the time consuming work of art and appreciating those long ago artisans that would work so tirelessly to produce this special volume.

Where not hung with the obligatory Berber tapestry, huge oiled canvasses richly framed or the odd water colour print of Belzini entering Abu Simbal or Napoleon entering Egypt taken directly from Déscription de l'Égypte, all graced the walls along side the obligatory mounted Gazelle or Ibis head. A set of Elephant tusks symbolically crisscrossed, adorned another wall while opposite, razor sharp scimitars held pride of place above what Bill could only presume to be the highlight of this assorted collection, a life size original Sarcophagus.

As Bill sat patiently waiting for his host’s entrance, his attention was caught by a smaller statue standing not more than two foot high, nestled amongst various other assorted knickknacks resting on a marble plinth, tucked into the shadows of a corner. The green face of Ptah the Egyptian god of creation stood peaking out from behind a vase of garishly coloured pink ostrich feathers. Bill sat staring, he was puzzled by the statue. There was something very obviously to his eyes just not quite right about it.

The fascination that Bill had with all things ancient, real or mythological, had begun as a child. He had found a book cast away thoughtlessly in the huge sprawling attic of his family home and had sat fascinated by the pen and ink line drawings, replica’s that had been inspired by Napoleon’s conquest of Egypt and the resulting discoveries. From that moment on he had considered people such as Giovanni Belzoni the Italian explorer a hero, along side the great pharaoh Ramses the second, whose exploits had fired his imagination. The passion once sparked had never left him, not even after being turned. 

While Lorena had squandered her ill gotten plunder from her victims on various sources of debauched amusements, Bill had not just been building a real estate portfolio. Unbeknown to her, he had also been building quite an impressive collection of artworks and pieces he had found scattered across many parts of the globe. 

He had always hoped to one day return to his childhood home and with his collection, live a quiet life reflecting on the history of the past amongst his treasured artefacts. He had even planned the lay out and arrangement and could see the old dining room turned into an office off his substantial hallway, decorated with his favourite pieces, all methodically placed to their best advantage. He told me this gave him some comfort and something to look forward to if it ever came to be, but that is perhaps in his future and it is not part of this tale so it would seem.

So I will go on now with how this evening and this visit to his old acquaintance was to lead to our meeting, what was to follow and how it changed my world and his.

Bill was staring at the statue of Ptah and about to take a closer look when he was joined not by Heinrich but by a petit, dark haired woman. She was well dressed in a pale blue crepe outfit as was the current fashion, looking to Bills inexperienced eyes to be of a simple design but undoubtedly was of an expensive cut. 

Her hair was pulled back at her temples by matching combs scattered with tiny blue diamantes like a sprinkling of shimmering stars, leaving the rest free to fall loosely around her shoulders. She wore only the vaguest traces of make up, a smearing of lipstick accentuating her mouth and a touch of rouge highlighting her cheeks. No one would say she was a stunning beauty but she had a quality to her, a hidden sensuous air, an aura surrounding her, and there was something about her that Bill found quite simply ….appealing. 

Walking into the room she had hesitated in her stride when she saw Bill. Although she had been made aware of his arrival, what she had not been made aware of was how handsome he was. She stopped when she reached a few feet from him and nodded her head in greeting. Bill was a little taken aback by this as she did not look Vampire and she noticed this.

‘My name is Fabienne, I am Heinrich’s business partner, I am human. I am sorry that he has been a little delayed but he will be with you shortly,’ she said with a pleasant French accent, while her eyes ran over his body from head to foot in appraisal. ‘I am Bill but obviously you would know that already,’ he said slightly amused and slightly annoyed this woman would so boldly look at him in that manner. 

When Heinrich had mentioned he was expecting his old friend, Fabienne had taken it quite literally and expected to find a much older man or vampire but it was obvious to look at Bill that he wasn't that old in age or in old world experience. He did not have the old European air of one who was turned centuries before, he was more modern, more in touch with his humanity she thought, although she did not know why, it was just something that she felt to be so. ‘May I ask, is there something the matter, have I grown two heads?’ Bill questioned a little impatiently now as she had gone on staring at him. 

Fabienne seemed to snap out of what ever she had been thinking and her face softened. ‘I am sorry I had not been expecting ….’ she hesitated, unable to finish what she was thinking, ‘one so young as yourself.’ Bill scoffed a little, he was older, much older in vampire years than her and did not take kindly to a human making assumptions or judgements about his age, a point he was for some reason or other prickly about. 

Perhaps it was his Vampire youth that made him so, his inexperience or his different culture, the English being so stuffy about things but he was not originally English she remembered, Heinrich had told her he was American. Or perhaps it was that his maker had always pointed out his youth and chided him for his vulnerability. It did not matter for his next words were far from stuffy; they were short and to the point. ‘I am older than you will ever be,’ he said, his voice cold and lacking its usual politeness. 

She shrugged as if to say she was not particularly interested in how old he was, it was neither here nor there to her, but secretly she was fighting an attraction to this creature of the night that had totally surprised her. She was not one to give in to her emotions; this was a protective defence she had from growing up with a possessive but loving father. He had meant well but at the slightest sign of her interest in any male, he had somehow managed to scare them off. How he accomplished this she did not know but she knew he only did it out of fear of losing her. She was all he had since her mother had died so young and he had raised her on his own.

And now he was gone and she was a free agent. She had taken over his role in the business that she had grown up in. Who better to keep things going? She had the experience and the knowledge and she was lucky, and she had her father’s long time partner Heinrich. It was Heinrich that had suggested to her that she replace her father Jean Paul in the business after his demise and as things were, Paris currently not a happy place to be in, she had agreed and come to Morocco, to Marrakech, and continued on the same as before. But everything was different.

The tension between the two of them seemed to intensify as she in her turn, politely requested Bill to make himself at home. They made no small conversation, neither one of them feeling inclined to do so as neither one of them was particular impressed with the other, or that is the impression they attempted to give but of course my friends, I know better than that now, you see my name is Fabienne and it is I who am regaling this story to you.


	4. Chapter 4

Bill and I sat in uncomfortable silence until thankfully Heinrich appeared smiling and looking very pleased with him self. His ‘business’ had gone well, I could tell by the satisfied look on his face. There was a genuine smile when he saw Bill and gliding over to us with his cat like soft tread, he nodded to Bill and unexpectedly embraced him. ‘It is so good to see you again my old friend’ he beamed. I stood as he enteredthe room, ready to leave the two friends alone but as I moved away Heinrich stopped me, putting his arm around me and making introductions all over again. 

‘Bill, I want to properly introduce you to Fabienne. She is Jean Paul’s daughter; you do remember Jean Paul my business partner? This is little Fabienne all grown up and now my partner, but she is more than that, I trust her with my life,’ he said smiling from me to Bill and back. Bill’s reaction was cool. He could hardly say that we had already gotten off on the wrong foot so he merely nodded again to Heinrich and attempted a somewhat watery smile in my direction.

‘Come, let us sit and be comfortable and talk,’ he said as he took the only single chair. I once again attempted to leave them however Heinrich called to me to stay, saying there were things that needed discussing that would be of interest to me too, although what I could not guess. 

I was forced by necessity to sit on the small chaise lounge next to Bill, sitting so closely we were touching. I was sure that I was not welcomed but then, I did not relish the situation either, however I was feeling amongst other things, some what guilty judging myself to be the cause of this tension through my very awkwardness when meeting him. Heinrich, ever perceptive, noticed something amiss and turned to me asking if I was all right and what was the matter. 

To my annoyance this seemed to amuse Bill as he sat there with a smirk on his face, the corners of his lips slightly turned upwards and looking, if I was being honest, extremely attractive. I in turn, was looking extremely annoyed and this did not go unnoticed by Heinrich either. As he looked from one face to the other, a look of comprehension swept across his face and I felt my face burning with embarrassment. 

‘The two of you have perhaps not gotten off to a good start but this must stop right now for I need you both to get on, I need you to work together you see,’ he was saying, much to my surprise. ‘Heinrich what are you talking about?’ I questioned him, totally puzzled. ‘Fabienne, Bill is not exactly what he seems to be, I am correct am I not Bill?’ he queried, but before Bill could answer Heinrich held his hand up, ‘first things first, were you followed? You were careful coming here weren’t you?’ he questioned with a slight touch of urgency in his voice. 

‘Heinrich, you should know better than to ask me that, you know my umm …skills at covering my tracks.’ Bill stated simply with due pride. ‘I know my friend but these are dangerous times and not just for humans but for our kind too. Unknowingly we could get caught up in the dammed war purely by accident. Stranger things have happened you know.’ ‘Heinrich, I was careful and that should be enough to assure you,’ Bill said simply enough.

‘That is fine, in that case we shall get down to business. This is where Fabienne can be of service as it was because of her dear Pere Jean Paul that I first became involved as you know.’ I looked at Heinrich then reluctantly at Bill, the two of them seemed to know exactly what was being referred to, it was only me that was in the dark and I was getting an extremely uncomfortable feeling. What did my father have to do with anything and how was it that Bill would even know of him, I thought?

‘Fabienne it is time you should know how your father and I met and what his involvement in our affairs was,’ Heinrich said, as my heart starting beating faster. I was apprehensive as I had not seen him this serious and I did not know what to expect. My Father, despite being over protective of me, had always been my support, the wind beneath my wings so to speak, and I did not want that opinion to change and so I was fearful that it may. 

Heinrich went on to tell me how things had been different in the past. He had always been interested in antiques, for him they were reminders of his lost humanity. A Louis XIV chair for example, had sat brand new in his Father’s salon when he was a child so he had always found it comforting to surround himself with the familiar objects of the by gone times. That was how he came to be in the antique trade.

But it was not just furniture and objects de art he collected, he was always on the look out for the unusual, the at times bizarre, and as chance would have it one rainy night in Paris, not long after the Treaty of Versailles had been signed, as he made his way home from a successful feeding, he happened to pass two rather shabby looking men holding up a third well dressed gent who for all apparent appearances was a little the worse for wear with drink.

Ah…but Heinrich is vampire and nothing could disguise the tell tale aroma of fresh blood. He knew there was something amiss and normally would not have given a fig for a human’s welfare but as he had already fed and fed well, he was in somewhat of a benevolent mood and consequently stopped to enquire about the welfare of the unfortunate gent. For his troubles he was given a string of abuse from the near do wells and not terribly politely told to mind his own business. 

Now you see this was an error, as the two wrongdoers had mistakenly assumed that this small slight man dressed somewhat as a dandy, well he was of no consequence to these two strapping fellows. They did not live long enough to fully appreciate their mistake. My Father on the other hand, for that is who the two had accosted, having had a serious blow about the head, was not fully aware of exactly what had happened but was however, sufficiently of his mind to accept Heinrich’s help and eventually got home in one piece.

Home at that time was above my Father’s business premises. He dealt in books, not new mind you but first additions and he supplemented his income with any other artefacts he found to be of interest. His income was small but sufficient enough to pay the rent and live fairly comfortably, plus provide me with a convent education. 

Jean Paul meeting Heinrich was like a match made in heaven for both of them. Heinrich was enchanted with the small but exclusive shop, filled to the ornate ceilings with books and bric-a-brac. As he had a substantial amount of funds available to him, his maker having tragically met the sun when accidentally staying out too late on one of her nightly prowls for young men, and having not found shelter by dawn, she had disintegrated leaving Heinrich as her sole beneficiary and free to do as he pleased leaving him considerably well off.

The first thing that Heinrich did was set the whores free as he was by this time no longer an interested participant to the carnal lusts. His madam had always satisfied those urges by procuring a steady stream of women for him and none of the whore variety. He now considered that he had standards to meet and they were above the lowly hussies he had previously ravished with abandon.

It did not take long for Jean Paul to realise that there was something very different about Heinrich and it was more than his exotic appearance or flamboyant demeanour but it wasn’t until one night several months after they met that Heinrich discussed becoming a financial backer and partner in the business. Heinrich showed his true self to Jean Paul in order to persuade the other that he was serious enough about the venture to trust him with his secret and his very life.

My father was a progressive and deep thinker. He believed in minding his own business, live and let live and apart from anything else, he realised that he very possibly owed Heinrich his life for saving him from the two scoundrels that had accosted him, it having become common for these gangs of thugs, the displaced unemployed after the great war found roaming the streets with no lively hood and no prospects, to resort to attempting kidnaps for ransom, at times ending in murder. 

All in all Father considered himself fortunate and did not hesitate to take Heinrich up on the offer. To secure a future without want or hardship for his daughter was one of the few pleasures in his life apart from his business and now that would be guaranteed. Yes, he could live with a partner who was, shall we say… a little different, he had saved his life so didn’t he owe him everything?

It was an unusual relationship the two partners had but an extremely successful one. With Heinrich’s backing, Jean Paul was able to buy new premises and expand his stock, even taking trips abroad to procure new items of interest. He travelled to the Middle East in search of anything that he thought would be of interest to the growing numbers of collectors that had now had their imaginations fired by the events in the Valley of the Kings on the fourth of November of 1922. 

When asked by Lord Carnarvon ‘what do you see?’ as Howard Carter first glimpsed inside the Boy King Tutankhamen’s tomb, he replied ‘I see wonderful things,’ and from that moment on business for Raoul picked up with the incredible frenzy sweeping the world. ‘King Tut’ madness gripped young and old alike and created an insatiable appetite for all things ancient.

It was on one such trip following up some leads from one of his now growing number of sources that Papa found himself in Jerusalem Heinrich told us. He had come to inspect a relief said to be of Sumerian origin, cuneiform text on the relief was said to refer to The Epic of Gilgamesh, King of Uruk who it is believed ultimately undertook a quest in search of immortality. 

Wandering through one of the many bazaars on his way to examine the tablet, he had been stopped by a dishevelled fellow in grubby stained robes who attempted to convince him to visit his dwelling where he would find something to his benefit. Father had no time for such nonsense and tried to pass but the robed man was insistent declaring that he could show him something never seen before, something secret that his brother’s son had found out in the desert caves high above the valley floor, something ancient.

Father was no fool and knew the tricks of the shysters and charlatans, so many fakes and forgeries had sprung up in the last months he had been astonished but at the same time, what would a few minutes delay hurt he thought, so trying to keep an open mind he followed the man to his house. It was small and in one of the poorer areas of the city but the two rooms of the dwelling were clean and tidy and were obviously well cared for.

After being offered refreshment Papa began to become impatient, time was pressing and he was feeling that perhaps this had been a mistake after all that was until Ali, his host, produced a bundle of what looked like dirty sheep skins and placed it before him on the small wooden table at the centre of the room for his perusal. Rather cautiously he undid the wrappings to find what looked like some kind of old linen shroud covering something further inside. 

Looking closely at that fragile linen he knew it to be of a great age. He had seen many different treasures in his time so he recognised this as something that may be of particular importance. Once exposed he found a further layer of linen, this time he noted it was carefully and methodically wound around the central object in such a way as to preserve the Latin script painstakingly written on it. He was excited as he could read Latin and saw glimpses of lettering and text in the dim light of the room. 

Finally after laying aside the ‘manuscript’ as he called the written piece of cloth, he sat staring at the ultimate contents, a cylindrical clay holder of some sort, plugged at one end with a seal that at some stage he noticed had been tampered with in order to get to the contents of the holder. He had seen similar clay holders before but none quite like this for this was clearly of a Roman period of time but the stopper in the cylinder was unique for it was covered in the ancient hieroglyphics of the Egyptians. 

His mind swirled. Before he began to look at the contents of the cylinder he erred on the side of caution and began to examine the linen manuscript. The style and verse perplexed him as it was clearly written at a much later time to the cylinder but then there were the hieroglyphs. How could a manuscript that seemed to be written around possibly eleven to twelve hundred AD be protecting a cylinder from around about sixty BC and yet have hieroglyphics from the ancients on the seal he thought, shaking his head perplexed by this riddle.

‘My friend,’ at last he spoke, ‘where did you come by this?’ he questioned as casually as he could trying to hide his excitement. ‘Good sir, my brother is a shepherd of goats and one day his son who was young at the time, was out tending the flock but like all young boys he had become bored and decided it would be more fun to play at climbing than to do as his father had bid, so without his supervision my brother’s best goat wondered. As you can imagine my brother is not pleased and he sent my nephew Mustafa to look for the goat. While looking with all diligence, little Mustafa nearly came to grief on the cliff edge when it crumbled and he fell but with much good fortune, he came to rest on a narrow ledge. In his attempts to find a way back to the top of the cliff he came across a narrow opening between the stones, a crevice. Thinking this may afford a way back to the top he went in only to find that it was a cave, not an opening. That is where he found this, this amongst the other things,’ he finished.

‘Other things you say, what other things were there?’ Papa asked keeping his emotions to himself. ‘There were bones good sir and Mustafa said there was the knitting of the metal suit.’ ‘The knitting of the metal suit, what ever do you mean?’ he asked, then suddenly an idea dawned on him, chain-mail, that had to be it. ‘What else was in this cave? And where was this, is it close by, can you take me to it?’

He watched the man closely for any hesitation that may indicate he was not genuine but he came to the conclusion that the man spoke the truth when he told him the cave was located in a place known as Qumran, some distance away and although the boy had taken the bundle from the cave himself, it had been several years ago and the family had since moved on to another district. It was only now after the death of his father that Mustafa had produced the bundle, giving it to his Uncle in the hopes of raising some desperately needed funds to support himself and his widowed mother.

Once again Papa turned his attention to the cylinder. Gently using the small pocket knife he always carried with him in case of emergencies, one always had to be prepared for anything as he well knew, he gingerly worked the knife in between the seal and the clay lip. With the slightest of movements he managed to run the knife around the edge, carefully working so as not to damage it in any way. His was dually rewarded for his patience as he felt the seal give slightly as he delicately prized it out, carefully placing it on the pile of sheepskin for safety sake.

Holding the cylinder to the light he peered in anxiously to see the contents. He was rewarded for his efforts as he could see the curls of a tightly wound document there in. Turning the cylinder on its side and placing his hand underneath the mouth in order to catch anything, he gently shook the clay until the beginnings a papyrus scroll peeped out enough for him to take hold of the end and extract it with extreme care. 

Here was yet another mystery. What was a papyrus scroll doing in a clay cylinder that was found in a cave next to the chain-mailed bones of a Latin scholar? This all needed further investigation but time was short and he was reluctant to look at the papyrus without some of the tools of his trade, a magnifying glass in the least and his tweezers and his gloves. Who knew what condition the papyrus was in and he knew from bitter experience that once exposed to the air, ancient antiquities had the habit of disappearing into a cloud of dust without extra care.

Paying Ali handsome compensation, he made his way to his appointment and returned to his hotel with as much speed as possible. Once there he wasted no time setting to work to unroll the scroll, so excited by his findings that he immediately telegraphed Heinrich to tell him of the news before making arrangements to return to Paris as soon as possible.

My Father had no professional qualifications in archaeology but his long experience dealing in antiques, as he liked to call the antiquities he handled, had provided him with enough knowledge and contacts to know that this was an extraordinary find and if his suspicions were correct, one that could lead to many ‘wonderful things’ to quote Howard Carter.


	5. Chapter 5

Fabienne had sat spell bound, listening mesmerised by the tale, so much so that she had not even noticed she was leaning comfortably into the crook of Bill’s shoulder after he had placed his arm around her to give them a little more room on the narrow lounge. Glowing with excitement, she begged Heinrich to continue the story as she settled back, moulding into Bill’s body in a totally relaxed and uninhibited manner, one that Bill did not seem to mind at all, Heinrich noticed.

‘As soon as your father returned to Paris he set about investigating the mysterious scroll in its equally mysterious container and of course the manuscript too. You were away in school at the time so you have no recollections of just how obsessed he was to become over the artefact. He spent every waking moment when not required to be at the shop trying to find what it all meant. The hours Fabienne that he spent at the Louvre, pouring through the ancient treasures housed there, looking for something, anything that would help him to unlock the mysteries,’ Heinrich said in a far off voice looking back and shaking his head.

‘Of the manuscript he learnt from the Latin translation that the knight who had undoubtedly come to his end in that far off cave, his name was long gone and was not named on the document but his story wasn’t. He was on crusade and found himself in Jerusalem, guarding the revered Temple of Solomon and its hidden treasures known only to a select few. One can only imagine what it was that were his motivations when he was moved to make a further pilgrimage to the desert, a quest of his own undertaking to follow in the footsteps of one before him, so the manuscript said.’

‘Whether or not he had found the cylinder at the temple and taken it with him after realising or suspecting its importance and wanting to study its meaning further in secret, or whether fate had destined him to come across it in some cave in the desert, I can only speculate. I guess we will never know but if it was the first hypothesis then he was a man that of vision with a passion for knowledge of the unknown and of true faith.’

Heinrich continued on, ‘Bearing a small cross and the scribbled drawing of two knights riding a single horse, there was every indication this knight was possibly one of the nine original members of the Pauperes commilitones Christi Templique Solomonici, the Latin for Poor Fellow – Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon.’ ‘The Knights Templar, that is the Knights Templar!!?’ Fabienne interrupted, ‘but that would mean this dated back to around 1120 AD or there about?’

 

‘It is quite possible that our knight from the cave was the ninth knight of the original Templars that little is known of. History tells us that after the first crusade there was a French knight by the name of Hugues de Payens who approached the then King of Jerusalem, Baldwin II. He along with eight other knights devised a fellowship if you like; it was for the protection of pilgrims to the area that were constantly at the mercy of the roaming bandits. There were doubts and suspicions as to their motives but who knows if their hearts were pure. At least with our man it seems so. The names of all the knights bar one are known so perhaps this fellow was the missing one. That was what your father assumed rightly or wrongly. I do not know but it does seem to fit nicely into the missing pieces of history does it not?’

‘It was not clear what had then happened for although the linen was whole, it was in places stained as if by the very blood of the unfortunate fellow oozing out of his very soul,’ here he gave Bill a questioning look but said no more on that score. ‘So we do not know for sure what caused his demise but from what your father learnt, he had found refuge in this cave that was to become his tomb and that is where he discovered the cylinder lying in the corner hidden for however long, resting forgotten and out of site to the world or perhaps not. It is all merely speculation on our part and of course the truth is not likely to come to light now.’

 

‘But Heinrich, what was it doing there, how did it get there and what was on this scroll? You still haven’t told me and what has it all got to do with now and with Bill?’ she questioned, for the first time realising that she had been sitting so closely nestled to him, his arm gently draped over her shoulder, hand resting on her arm. Her cheeks suddenly flamed red with embarrassment as she realised to pull away now would be totally rude to him and besides, she liked the feel of his arm around her, and it gave her comfort.

‘We never found out what or why it came to be in the cave. As to what the scroll contained….you need to know some history for you to understand just how much this scroll meant to me and my kind. My dear, throughout the history of my kind, those of us who have sought to live as best we could amongst our fellow humans without resorting to the heinous behaviour of those darker creatures who spend their nights taking the lives of the innocents, we creatures of the night have always wondered how we came to be.’

‘Are we merely some horrible mistake in the creator’s eye or some trick of fate that has a yet unknown significance? Mankind asks the same questions, how did we come to be and why. If there is a god and here Fabienne, as a human man of the cloth I believed in a creator, well then for those of what I like to think of as the enlightened ones of my race, the questions are equally important. Why are we here and how did we come to be and to be so very different?’

 

‘The answer to that question was on the scroll, or so your father believed. There were too many mentions of Ptah the creation god for it not to be of some importance, of significance to the meaning of life and there was something else too. But we may never know now,' he sighed. ‘Never know, what do you mean?’ Fabienne exclaimed. 

‘The scroll is gone,’ Heinrich replied regretfully. ‘After your father’s sudden heart attack I went through all his papers as executor to his estate and it was not amongst them. We had worked together for many years attempting to decipher the meanings of the hieroglyphics on the papyrus and had gotten far. We knew that the key to the riddle lay with the ancient god of Ptah or as the ancient Egyptians believed, the creation god, but there was one last piece of the puzzle missing and that was to be found on the scroll, however,’ he cleared his throat before he went on, ‘there was a problem because near the very edge there was a missing piece. It may have broken away or it may have been deliberately cut from it but never the less, it was missing.’

‘We were trying to decipher the rest of the scroll to see if we could make any sense of it and work out what the missing information may be but now, it is gone just when we were so close. I do know that there was something that Jean Paul had found, something very exciting as he had sent me a note the night that he had his heart attack. I think that he may have solved the puzzle perhaps of the whereabouts the missing piece was for he wanted to meet with me urgently. That gave me hope that finally we were to learn the truth or some of it perhaps. But then fate took a different path and I lost my good friend and the scroll.’ He sighed. ‘Your father had no secrets from me so it is inconceivable for the scroll to vanish the way it has. It makes no sense to me at all that he would have hidden it or secreted it away when we were going to meet that very next night.’ He shook his head as he sat thinking over things.

‘You said that the scroll was in a clay container,’ Fabienne exclaimed, ‘was it so big?’ she asked, indicating with her hands, ‘and terracotta in colour, like so?’ she questioned as she looked around before indicating Bill’s belt, ‘the colour of tanned leather.’ ‘Yes, yes that is was it looked like, but why, how do you know this?’ Heinrich asked excitedly. ‘And it had a stopper, like a seal with markings on it?’ she asked. Heinrich nodded empathically. ‘I have seen it many times and more than that, I know exactly where it is,’ she smiled. ‘You have seen it and you know where it is, right now?’ Heinrich asked incredulously.

‘It is safe, it is in Paris,’ I told them. ‘Paris? But Fabienne how do you know this and why was it not amongst his things when I was going through his estate?’ Heinrich asked flabbergasted. ‘You know my father, you know how consumed he was, you said yourself that he had become obsessed with this thing, well I was worried about him, I could see he was tired and to me he did not look well. The night before he … the night before he died I was angry with him, he looked worn out and although I did not know at the time what it was that had captured his interest, I knew that he needed some rest. I persuaded him to have an early night and while asleep I took the cylinder and scroll and hid them from him so that if he got up in the middle of the night to resume his work he would not be able to and would have no alternative but to go back to bed. I remembered seeing them many times but father had never told me why they were so important, he had always impressed me that it had something to do with a mythical treasure,’ I told them.

‘That is true in its own way.’ Bill spoke for the first time for over an hour. His voice so close to me had made me jump, his hand on my arm automatically stroking me as if to soothe a nervous pet. I turned to look at him, sitting as close as we were, our faces not more than a foot apart, my pulse quickened gazing as I was into his blue eyes. ‘Bill, I still don’t quite see how you are involved in this?’ I questioned. 

Bill then told me a little of his background, how he and Heinrich had met through Lorena in Chicago and in Paris, Lorena moving from one place to another when things became too risky. Bill and Heinrich had hit it off, perhaps it was Heinrich recognising something of a kindred spirit in Bill as neither of them had chosen to be turned and did not wish to live as those such as Lorena lived, but wanted nothing more than to live like a normal person or as close to it as they could. 

They had often spent hours in deep philosophical debates over any number of subjects but it was not until they discussed creation that Heinrich took a chance and confided in the younger vampire in the hopes of gaining another ally in his quest for the truth. Heinrich knew of Bill’s interest in history and his collection of artefacts but he had not been aware until Bill, trusting the older vampire, regaled several of his more hair -raising exploits he had encountered in his many travels seeking various pieces, just how adapt he was in covering his tracks. 

He had been chased by Indians in the Amazon, escaped a staking while in Peru and had very nearly met the sun in the jungles of Angkor Watt when attempting to locate a jade Buddha said to be over eight hundred years old. Heinrich was terribly impressed by the younger vampire’s ability to stay undercover and to procure information. He had a talent and one that Heinrich was going to make sure was kept under wraps so to speak and protected no matter what. If the European or United States Monarchies got to hear of his talents then he would be seconded in no time and would no longer be a free agent and that, Heinrich thought, would be a big loss. Yes, there was something very special about Bill, something almost mystical the older vampire felt.

Heinrich recounted to Bill all that he knew of the scroll and events leading up to finding it. He knew that Bill had contacts all over the world that dealt in antiquities and thought perhaps he could put feelers out for information. After all, anything would be of help. Bill in turn was as inspired as Heinrich and Jean Paul; he too was just as passionate as they were to find the noble truth of their existence if he could, and any help he could give that got them closer to an answer was fine with him. 

So Bill sent out messages to those within his trusted circle for any information that may be of interest, then he waited. It would be over two months before any news filtered back to him and then it was nothing concrete. Rumours had been floating around for years of lost treasures to equal, if not surpass that of Tutankhamen’s or of the lost library of Alexandria. There was even the theory of a vast archive beneath the Sphinx, hiding all the wonders of knowledge belonging to the ancient world in elaborate chambers carved from the subterranean caves beneath the bedrock of the Giza plateau.

It took Bill just as long to sift through all the messages he received before concluding only two of the responses he had back were of any relevance and were worth further investigation. So it was that Bill found himself on his way to Scotland via London stopping off overnight at the very club he had owned now for many years. Robert, the faithful retainer that had been there in the eighteen eighties when Bill had played a role in the capture of Jack the Ripper,* he had long since retired of course and passed away but Robert’s son Geoffrey, as part of an agreement that Bill had come to with Robert, he was now in charge of over seeing the smooth running of the premises. 

‘Good to see you Mr Bill Sir,’ Geoffrey greeted Bill. ‘A package has arrived for you and I have placed it in your office. I have made all the other arrangements that your instructions requested, your train will leave at eleven tonight. There will be someone to meet you at the other end and all other details have been taken care of Sir. Is there anything else that I can get for you now, perhaps when you are ready Sir, I can have Rose available for you?’ he finished. 

The club was officially what was known to be an exclusive ‘gentleman’s club’ but unofficially it provided a service that most Londoners would never have believed could be possible, it provided willing girls for the purposes of feeding the growing underground community of Vampires who were disillusioned or sickened or both by the darker side of their nature and made a life style choice to live in a new manner, what was to eventually become what we now know as mainstreaming. 

Bill had seen an opportunity to provide a service, one that was close to his heart. He abhorred the debauchery he had suffered under Lorena and this was his chance to give others an alternative to the nightly feeding feasts on innocent victims, so many ending in unnecessary death at the fangs of a young and hungry vampire. However the club had strict rules, there was to be no draining and no group feeding. This was strictly enforced and consequently, it was gaining a wide reputation with membership sought after from those other more enlightened or jaded members of the community. 

The girls were all willing participants and all from the middle classes, after all as Bill said, this was not some cheap bordello, this was a gentleman’s club and there were high standards to set. Most of the girls had been working in various professions prior to coming to work at the club, these included a stenographer, a maid, a hairdresser and a school teacher and other respectable professions. They had various reasons for the change in employment that lead them there but in general, it provided a good living as they were well paid, food and lodging was provided, regular health checks were performed and they were safe. Should they choose to do so, glamouring was an option but as a reflection of the club members, it was an option that was not taken by the ladies as they actually enjoyed the respect received from their ‘patrons’. 

‘Give me half an hour Geoffrey then send Rose to my room,’ Bill said as he made his way to his office. He quickly went through his general post as he sat at his desk before turning his attention to a much beaten and tattered package covered in many postage stamps and markings. To an outsider it would be evident that the parcel had come from afar and had taken a considerable effort to reach its destination.

Carefully unwrapping the package, he studied its contents for some minutes, delicately turning the leaves of the folios, searching the script and illustrations for anything that may be useful. He then turned his attention to the accompanying letter, written in broken English but understandable as the Rinpoche was his friend and knew him well from his time staying in the mysterious Kingdom at the top of the world, Tibet. 

When Bill had been passing through on his way to climb Mt Everest, an achievement that was a test of his physical stamina as it was during a blizzard and at night of course, he had been fascinated by the local peoples, their customs and their wonderful contentment with life. They were a gentle, generous and happy nation of peoples. They were spiritual, caring and compassionate and his time there was a spiritual awakening of sorts for him. That was how he came to meet Rinpoche and begin his true quest for the truth of his kind. If Heinrich had set flame to his curiosity then it had been Rinpoche that provided the spark that smouldered silently waiting for that final flame to burst forth. 

His friend had advised that he could find no mention of what he was seeking that he was aware of but, he had found amongst the archives, a folio of ancient script that may provide information after some further investigation. He advised he had set the monks at the monastery where the scriptures had been found, to translating the text. This however could take months and apologising, he advised he would keep him informed. He did however confirm that Bill was right, the ‘Pearls’ he had mentioned were known to exist but again it would take time to track down anything further.

Bill smiled to himself; he at least had confirmation of a theory that had been growing in his mind for some time. If he could just find further proof that could substantiate his beliefs then he could present this to the Authority, which was why the papyrus was of so much importance to him, and to the future. It was all beginning to tie together in his mind.

So with that lead on the back burner he was left with his trip to Scotland as his only other hope. Checking his watch he made sure that he had plenty of time to feed and get to the train. Going upstairs, Rose was waiting for him in his suite of rooms. Although Bill hated the ritual of feeding and sex, he was after all a male and had his needs but although Rose was willing, it still did not have any meaning for Bill, there was nothing personal, no attachment so to speak in his relationship with his regular ‘girl’ whenever he was at the club. She on the other hand had told him that she felt it an honour to service his needs as he was such a gentle and caring employer and had been grateful for a new start to her life. 

He was quite touched by this and had spent some time talking to her whenever he had finished feeding and his other wants were taken care of. He had learnt that she had been a teacher and had been engaged to be married but that the young man in question apparently had not been as dedicated to her as she thought and had gotten a waitress at the local tea shop in what Rose put as ‘in the family way.’ He did the right thing by the waitress and she was left heart broken. She had then decided that small village life left something to be desired; she resigned her post and took the bold step of moving to London where by sheer luck she found this position. She had never looked back since. She was happy and even had a new gentleman in her life, he was training to be a pilot and the only dark speck on her horizon was the unrest that was in Europe, it was 1938 and things were soon to change for all of them.

As he sat on the bed dressing, there was a discreet knocking on the outer door of the living room that adjoined his bedroom. Calling out to come in, Geoffrey entered with the late post which included a rather thick envelope post marked Scotland. He finished dressing and sat in his lounge to read it. The letter contained further information on his quest and included a rubbing of a mason’s tablet from the very place he had been set to visit, Rosslyn Chapel.

After reading the letter thoroughly and examining the rubbing, he rang for Geoffrey and advised that his trip was no longer necessary but he would stay in London overnight now before returning to Paris the following evening. ‘Oh and Geoffrey,’ he added as an after thought, ‘see to it that Rose is given special consideration, she deserves it,’ he added thoughtfully. He was happy for the girl, she had found something that Bill hadn’t, she had found herself and had found love and that was something that Bill thought was fairly remarkable for these days. 

It was something that was lost to Bill forever so he thought and he missed it, he missed it terribly.

 

* See The Revelation Part 2


	6. Chapter 6

I had sat listening trying not to interrupt as Heinrich and Bill had gone over all the events of their friendship and quest over the years but with this latest piece of information I felt compelled to say something at this point. ‘But what was this rubbing, what did you find and how did it help you?’ I asked. ‘You have heard of the chapel and its supposed relationship to the Templars,’ Bill asked me. ‘Yes, I have heard of it but I do not know a lot about it.’

‘Rosslyn Chapel was built by William Sinclair of the St Clair family. His family was descended from Norman knights that supposedly had links to the Knights Templars and were to be found in Northern France. The chapel itself is a wonder. It is full of both Templar and Masonic symbolism. It is said that there is a secret code that is to be found there, one that perhaps as legend has it, relates to the Holy Grail but as yet, no one has been able to decipher what this code means, if anything at all. Even though they started building it in 1446 AD on the ceiling where the code is supposed to be, there is corn depicted. Now how can that be?’ Bill asked.

‘What do you mean how could that be? I don’t understand why that is so odd,’ I queried. ‘Corn was from the New World, it had not yet been discovered when the chapel was built.’ ‘Oh my god, yes I had not thought, but that is incredible,’ I said as I sat digesting this piece of the puzzle as Bill continued on. ‘For me my interest was piqued not by the code but by the description of a pillar that is found there, the Apprentice Pillar.’ ‘Bill what is that, I have not heard of this?’ I questioned. Bill went on to explain the origins of the Apprentice Pillar and that at the base of the pillar are carved dragons. From the dragons mouths vines twist their way up the pillar. It is said that the dragons sit gnawing at the roots of time. 

In Christian mythology the pillar represents The Tree of Life, but in Norse mythology it represents Yggdrasil, The Tree of Knowledge and knowledge was exactly what Bill was looking for. Was there a reference or even a repository of information at the chapel, something that the Templars had found, taken and hidden there? Could it be that the Apprentice Pillar held some hidden kind of meaning or even, and this was a thought that had struck Bill, could it possibly hide within it the Holy Grail? Or for Bill of even more interest, did it hide the key to creation and knowledge within it? And what of this mysterious tablet that he had been told about, could that provide a link to the missing information needed to help them with the scroll and the creation myth? 

Across the world ancient cultures have mythologies based around trees or pillars supporting the heavens from the earth and there are so many creation myths but this, having a link to the Templars and Freemasonry, another group with similar goodly intentions as the Templars, well it seemed to be more than a coincidence and was worth further investigation. The remains of a Templar Knight are found with an ancient Egyptian scroll, was there a connection Bill wondered and if there was, what was it? So when Bill sent out feelers, his contact suggested that perhaps it was worth taking a look at. 

‘But as I said, instead he managed to get a rubbing of the tablet, I do not know how; I tend not to ask too many questions on that score with my contacts. He told me that the tablet had on it Masons marks, marks that seemed ironically like hieroglyphs and it was that he thought that may be the link between the scroll and the Templars. Masons have traditionally left their marks on their work, some are symbolic – like a signature or trademark for the project they were working on, and others were merely the mark left by the person doing the work.’

‘You have to remember Fabienne, that for many years there was no education, no reading or writing for the general population. Although gifted in their work with stone, many could not write let alone read, so they left their marks. Their marks were misinterpreted at times as they were similar to cuneiform text like the ancient Sumerians used, when really they were no more than the signature if you like, of a worker. Think of it similar to an artist that signs a painting and no more. So having established from the rubbing that there was no absolute link to the scroll, the marks turning out to be the marks of the stone masons only, there was no point continuing that line of investigation. I had come to a grinding halt it would seem.’ 

Bill sighed. ‘It at least ruled that out of the equation. It means that more than likely it was just pure chance that this Templar Knight happened upon this cave that contained the scroll. We don’t know why and we don’t know how it came to be there but it was there and now, just as we thought we were getting so close to deciphering it with only one more piece of the puzzle to solve, it disappeared and we thought that we had lost it.’

‘It is not lost. It is perfectly safe and I can arrange for it to be brought here, I still have contacts in Paris of course, they are trustworthy, I would trust them with my life if needs be,’ I told them. ‘That we hope will not be necessary dearest,’ Heinrich smiled, ‘but you have not told us where it is and why you did not keep it yourself.’ The two vampires looked at her eagerly waiting for her to speak. 

‘When my Father died I was lost. We were so very close and I was not really thinking that clearly but I did know one thing and that was that the scroll had consumed him so I thought that if it was something so precious to him it could be valuable but I had so much to do, my future to think of at the time. What was to become of me, would I stay on and take over the shop, should I leave Paris and start a new life? There were so many questions without answers at the time and so many important decisions to be made that the last thing that I thought I could do was take over his work on some mythological treasure map so gave it into the safe keeping of the only ones that I knew I could trust to keep it safe and not be curious about the contents. I gave it to the Mother Superior at the convent where I went to school.’

‘I knew that Sister Alberta, my history teacher, would recognise the importance of something as old as it was so I told them that it was of historical significance and to keep it safe and hidden until I would come to collect it but then when things in Europe became so clouded,’ she frowned, ‘I asked them to hide it and tell no one about it and they of course agreed. They are fiercely patriotic of course with strong ties to the underground but also they are an old order and as I said, when I was at school it was Sister Alberta and her love of all things ancient that had awakened my understanding of my Father’s passion for antiquities. She opened my mind to past times and Father provided the reality with the relics he collected. It seemed fitting. Plus as time wore on and the situation in Paris deteriorated, the convent was most likely the safest place for the scroll to be hidden because, to my knowledge, not once has it been raided or searched by the occupying army.’

Bill had turned to me with an interested look when I mentioned the underground. He looked as though he was about to say something when he changed his mind then he looked distant, lost in thought as though he was miles away and thinking of something else. I was curious about this and wondered what it was that he was thinking but as I was still puzzled by something bigger at the time, I did not say anything about it. There were other more pressing questions that I wanted to ask. 

‘But Heinrich, I still don’t understand, you led me to believe that you had not seen Bill for years and that this was a chance meeting and yet from what you are telling me that is not so?’ Heinrich looked apologetic. ‘Dear girl, you know how creatures of my kind can be secretive; we have to be careful when we are out in public but it was wrong of me to keep this small deception from you. I could not tell you before but now that you have learnt the truth about your Father, the Scroll and our mission, then there will be no more lies.’

‘When Bill was still with Lorena we had no choice but to keep our interests to ourselves. She was not the kind of creature that would have taken our kind of, how shall I put it, our kind of investigation in the spirit that it was intended. There are many of our kind that are trapped in the old ways, embracing the dark side and are quite happy to hold sway over their victims. If it became known that there was even the slightest of chances we could find the truth about our beginnings and let us just say for example, the truth may not be what those others wish to hear, then we have to be extra careful.’ 

‘There are those too that would use our findings for mischief only and not for enlightenment. Really, until we discover the truth we do not know what the effect of this knowledge will have so we must be cautious in the extreme. Knowledge is power and must be used wisely. We don’t even know what the truth will turn out to be but I have a feeling that Bill suspects. Come Bill, is that not so?’ Heinrich asked inquisitively, a small smile creasing his lips and with a knowing look on his face before going on.

‘Besides, Bill needs to be totally protected, for all intents and purposes he is a piano player here in Marrakesh for his health. It is the only way for him to be free to move around incognito and without drawing attention to our real search. So far in all these years we have been lucky, no one has suspected but times are changing and things are more difficult now, the situation in Europe is making it so. Just think dear girl, what ever the truth, no matter what it is, it could change everything and not just for us. It could change the world.’

Looking at his watch he spoke again. ‘It is late for you dear one, you must be getting home. I am sure that Bill will not mind escorting you. It is after curfew and it is dangerous for a young woman to be out on the streets on her own, good night my dear I will see you tomorrow evening and we will get things arranged to retrieve the scroll,’ and with that he left without giving me time to protest his suggestion that Bill take me home.

Bill was smiling slightly as though reading my mind. ‘Heinrich is right, it isn't safe for you to be out this late on your own, curfew or not. Come, I will be with you so if we come across any gendarmes that are a bit to over zealous, please leave the talking to me.’ With that he took my arm and after getting my pocket book and wrap, we left. 

My apartment was not far but with the way the labyrinth of small streets and alleyways meandered, it took a little time to get there. The night was quiet and we passed no one. It being hot and stuffy for this time of the year, perhaps all were retired and trying to sleep. It was late now, after two thirty as we walked silently through the narrow stone ways. Bill was holding my arm as though to protect me or guide me in the darkened streets and it was comforting. 

After the rocky start to our evening I was feeling terribly remorseful. I had not exactly been welcoming to him and knowing what I had learnt that night well, I was feeling really guilty. But my comment regarding his age had been unintentional, made purely to hide the fact that he was younger and more attractive than I had been expecting. If truth be told, I had not been expecting much and to see Bill standing there, handsome and appealing, it had thrown me so much that I had blurted out the first thing that I could think of. 

As though he could read my thoughts, he broke the silence between us as we walked when he whispered, ‘Fabienne, I am sorry if I appeared rude tonight when we met. I didn't mean to but from what Heinrich has told you tonight I … I didn't exactly have a good time of it with my maker Lorena.’ He hesitated before going on, ‘She could be very cruel and was good at finding a person’s weak spot and using it to her advantage. She had taunted me mercilessly from time to time about my age, my… inexperience, and that is not something that any man, human or vampire, can handle from a woman.   
I apologise if I seemed rude, I hope that you did not take it personally,’ he finished.

‘Bill I owe you an apology too. I was taken by surprise when I saw you,’ I was glad of the shadows as I was blushing as I said this but no doubt Bill’s vampire eye sight would have noticed this as I could see the corners of his mouth curling into the slightest of smiles. ‘I was expecting someone much older,’ I held up my hand to silence any protest, ‘and by older what I mean is older in the old European vampire way. You have an air of modernity about you; you are not steeped in the ancient and what I consider to be stifling old country ways. I have met some of Heinrich‘s older acquaintances and to be honest, I don’t trust them and I don’t feel comfortable around them.’

‘And you feel comfortable with me?’ Bill questioned kindly. I thought about this. I thought about his arm around me as we sat on the lounge and how he had absentmindedly soothed me when speaking of my Father at the time of his death. He was kind I felt, and caring and perhaps compassionate was the word that I was looking for, yes he was compassionate and sensitive to someone else’s feelings. 

‘Yes, yes I do feel comfortable with you Bill,’ I responded. Even in the darkness I could still see the pleased look he had and although I was embarrassed, I was pleased to make him smile a little. He was, after all, so very attractive and I felt drawn to him and his wonderful smile. There was something compelling about him and it wasn’t just his looks, there was an aura about him, something intangible that I could not yet put my finger on, something that I felt I recognised in him.

We walked the last few blocks of the way in a comfortable silence now, Bill protectively holding my arm as he escorted me. I did feel comfortable and despite the fact that he was vampire, I felt safe with this dark handsome creature. He was different to most of Heinrich’s acquaintances, not just younger in vampire years but more progressive, more enlightened, more thoughtful and thought provoking. He was charming but not in an oily way. I liked him. I liked him a lot.

Finally reaching my some what mediocre front door, I put my key into the lock. I noticed the handle seemed to be loose and could not help thinking that this was odd. As I opened the door and turned on the light I sensed, before I saw, that something was wrong.

I let out a gasp, the light in my hallway went on to reveal the small hall table with its single draw that normally stood near my door, was over turned and its contents scattered. Bill, who had been standing behind me, gently pushed me to one side and with vampire speed hastily had a look around, checking all the rooms for signs of the intruders amongst the carnage that had been my rather comfortable apartment, now resembling nothing more than a disaster zone. 

There was not one room that had been left in tact. Furniture was overturned and the contents of draws scattered across the floor. The air was thick with feathers floating like snowflakes as we walked through the rooms and disturbed them, sending them flying through the air and up our noses, the results of the many cushions that had been slashed and scattered.

The kitchen had not escaped either with all the storage jars of food strewn around, the spilt grains of rice and cracked wheat making loud crunching noises as we passed through to examine the rear door that led into the minuscule court yard. Finding the door still locked, Bill concluded that whoever had done this had taken a very big chance by coming in via the front door, showing they had the utmost confidence in their own abilities and contempt for me and my home. 

The bedroom had faired no better than the rest with the mattress slashed to pieces, the pillows suffering the same fate as the cushions and my small dressing table with its bottles of impossibly hard to get French perfumes all broken and emptied. The room reeked of an intoxicating mix of Lilly of the Valley and Ashes of Roses making it even harder to breathe with the feathers swirling around in their ghostly clouds. 

There was one saving grace only in this entire mess, my clothes and jewellery was relatively intact. My wardrobe had been opened and hangers disturbed but nothing had been damaged and my meagre assortment of costume jewellery, although thrown across the top of my dressing table, it was still all there. 

I then walked into the bathroom and promptly slipped and fell. My many jars and bottles of lotions and creams had been emptied across the floor making it dangerously slippery to walk on. Bill quickly picked me up and held me in his arms to stop me from falling again onto the shards of glass from the broken bottles and jars that were scattered throughout the rest of the debris. It was only then that the full magnitude of what had happened began to take its effect and I started shaking.

‘You can’t stay here,’ Bill said still holding me, ‘I have spare rooms; you can stay with me until we sort this out tomorrow. Plus, it’s not safe for you to be here, they may come back.’ Before I could say anything he put me down in the hall and he had slipped back into my room grabbing a couple of things that he must have thought I would need, shoving them into a large handbag I kept hanging on the back of the door that had seemingly gone unnoticed by the intruders. He then swept me off my feet and with vamp speed, he had fixed the front door and had it door locked behind us and we were gone.

He covered at least five blocks in the space of what seemed like a few moments before stopping. ‘Do you think that you can walk? I wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible in case the place was being watched.’ I was startled by this thought. It had not occurred to me. From the moment we had walked into my home all I had thought of was the mess and how stupid anyone could be robbing me, for what? Now I realised, nothing had been taken. ‘Why, why would I be getting watched?’ I was asking him puzzled. Still I could not comprehend. 

Bill looked at me; even in the darkness of the shadows where we were standing I could see his lapis lazuli brilliant blue eyes studying my face. ‘Fabienne’ he whispered keeping his voice soft so as not to attract attention, ‘they are searching for it, there is someone else after the scroll. We are not the only ones that have an interest in it.’ I gasped as the full reality of the situation hit me. Of course, that is why nothing was taken, there was nothing there that they wanted but they had to make sure of that and search thoroughly, that is why the place was such a mess. 

Starting to shake again, Bill put his arm around my shoulders. ‘It’s all right, you are safe when you are with Heinrich or me, and we won’t let anything happen to you. Come on, you need to get some sleep,’ he said gently to me in an attempt to sooth me, then seeing my somewhat shaky state, he picked me up again and we were gone in the blink of an eye. 

We reached Bill’s home in no time even with him traversing the way through many alleyways and streets, doubling back here and there, taking a tortuous route in an attempt to throw off anyone who may be watching. I did not want to say it to him to give offence as I was deeply regretting my behaviour from earlier this evening, but I thought for someone to have followed at the speed we were going would just not have been possible unless they too were vampire and then Bill would have known, or so I believed. 

With great care Bill stood me on the front step, standing so closely behind me in case of attack from behind that our bodies were pressed against each other. I turned a little to see his face as he reached into his trouser pocket attempting to reach his keys, our faces so close that my hair brushed his face as I turned. Standing pressed together as we were, I felt his body tremble at the touch and it sent a thrill through me. As he reached past me to unlock the door, I felt the rippling of his muscles through his silk shirt, feeling firm and sculptured and hard against my soft skin. 

I suppose that the night had taken its toll on my nerves as just the touch of his body, his cool skin through his shirt against my warm flesh, sent a shiver through me. Bill felt it, I could not hide it and he knew this was different to my trembling from the shock of the attack at the apartment. As he turned the key in the lock of the wooden doors he had to lean in even further to work the old lock, brushing my face with his as he did so.

When the key turned, he turned too to look into my eyes searching for something he was unsure of but hoping to find. If as the poets say, the eyes are the windows of the soul then I admit it, I was lost to the soul I found as I stood gazing into his eyes. Tentatively, unsure of the reception he would receive, he leant in closer to me and tenderly brushed my lips with the barest of touches, his lips cool and soft, barely a whisper of a caress but enough to awaken me, to set me on a path that I had never before dreamt of.


	7. Chapter 7

I stood without moving, everything stood still, time, my life, this moment. Wrapping his arms around me and pulling me to him even tighter, he found my mouth again, this time with my passion awoken my mouth invited more, craved more and responded gently at first then, as the swirl of emotions ran through me, our kiss deepened. I had never kissed like this, never like this, this crushing exploration of each other so intimate and exciting. I was swimming, my head swirling, my eyes closed, darkness was taking me.

I felt my legs dissolving, I could not stand, my heart was pounding and I could not breathe. I was falling. 

Bill was not the first man I had been with but the others, a boy from my local village near my convent school who was my first crush, and the men that had taken me more out of loneliness than lust, well they were different. I had never experienced this hunger, the insanity of the moment, the torturous blinding need to be fulfilled. 

I am French, this is who and what I am and I do not apologise friends for this outpouring of my emotions. There was no other moment in my life before this moment; I never wanted this to end. I wanted to be locked in a room with this beautiful creature of darkness until we were spent, then never to leave but always to be here, held in time for the entire world to desire but never see, like some renaissance masterpiece, an image of ecstasy too precious to be displayed to mere mortals but kept safely hidden for only the gods to praise.

Bill caught me as I felt myself melt into his arms. Gently for such a creature, he carried me not to a bedroom on the upper floor as I had expected but to a screened, cunningly hidden doorway, then down a flight of stairs carved out of the very bedrock and worn by the tread of ancient feet, to what I expected to be a cellar but in reality it turned out to be a sumptuously appointed boudoir. 

Sitting me on a bed covered in silken embroidered cloth coverings, I was overwhelmed by the erotic feeling to this room. I had not thought that one such as Bill could hide such a sensual side as this room displayed. Every feature from the silks on the bed to the embroidered tapestry depicting two lovers entwined in their passionate naked embrace, loving each others bodies with a tenderness that aroused as well as touched the very core of your being, all of it was hand picked with the utmost of good taste, sensual and yet not obscenely so.

Even the colours of the room exuded eroticism. Three walls were painted a rich ruby red colour while the featured wall behind the huge ornately carved bed head was of a deep aubergine purple jewelled hue. And the bed head its self with its seductive carvings of couples in the midst of love making, this was truly a revelation to me. I had never thought that one as serious and reserved as Bill appeared would have this side to him and it excited me. 

Strategically placed in each corner of the room were small tile inlaid octagonal tables with an individually sculptured piece of erotica in alabaster from various ancient cultures, each one depicting lovers in the act of their most passionate moments. Just looking at the tenderness of the expressions told me so much about the creature that was standing before me. 

He told me later that this was not who he was normally, that some would say he is old fashioned but he would normally consider himself to be conservative except here, he had said, here in Marrakech he had been moved, carried away with the exotic locale and the heady atmosphere. Something about the place had touched a side to him that no where else in his wanderings had. No other place had stirred these erotic muses in him. He was embarrassed and yet as he said, he had wanted to show me this side to him. I was the first person he had ever bought here to his haven, his sanctuary. He had let me into his inner most private being and I was thrilled, but I digress.

That night, that very first night that we met, he stood there hesitating, almost I thought a little shy or apprehensive. This would not do I thought, I needed him and I hoped that he needed me. I could not let him have any doubts or uncertainties, this was right and I knew it to be so with all my heart, even though I had never before done this, gone so willingly with someone that I had just met, not like this, never like this. Slowly I began to unbutton the front of my dress as if to give him reassurance that I was a willing participant to what we were about to do. I had no hesitations and I did not want Bill to have any either.

As if embarrassed by any implication of reluctance, Bill stepped forward quickly and reaching over softly said, ‘May I?’ as his long sensuous fingers quickly undid the remaining buttons before slipping his hands inside my dress and easing it over my shoulders then lifting me gently, so that it fell on the floor in a puddle at my feet. Just as deftly, he slipped the straps of my silk petticoat down my arms, caressing my shoulders sensually as he did so. His touch was enough to make me shiver with excitement. 

His soft hands continued to gently massage my shoulders, his delicate fingers working their magic as slowly he moved them inch by inch tracing across my collar bone then trailing tantalising down to lightly trace the outline of my hardened nipples before cupping each of my full breasts in his hands and reaching down to flick his cool tongue across them, softly sucking each one in turn. 

‘Fabienne,’ he whispered, as he tilted my head up to look into his eyes before taking my hands and placing them on the buckle of his trousers belt, the invitation being very clear, his doubts all evaporated and his desires evident by the very obvious need he was feeling. It was one of the most sensual acts that I was ever to experience in my life. 

A low guttural groan escaped from him as I undid his belt and pants, unintentionally brushing his substantial hardness as I did so. Letting them slip to the floor in a mound of fabric, they joined my dress and now my silk undergarments. I caught my breath as I realised that Bill did not wear any under clothing so he stood there in front of me totally exposed. I could not help myself, I could not take my eyes away from him. He was the most beautiful creature I had ever seen. My previous encounters had been rushed affairs in the dark or under the covers so this, this magnificent creature standing unashamedly in front of me was a revelation. 

I wanted to touch him, to kiss him, to feel him, to experience feeling him in my hands against my skin, my mouth, my tongue. I was lost to that world of want and need. I did not know if this was how most women felt, these things were not discussed amongst the acquaintances that I had and being unmarried, I was even less likely to be included in any such conversations. All I knew at the time was what I was feeling and seeing and wanting so desperately that I felt I was not me, I was no longer in control and I unashamedly loved it. 

Bill had taken off his shirt while I had sat mesmerised at the sight of him. I was unable to move, I just wanted to watch him, the way the shaded brass lanterns with their lattice work cast shadows across his body, emphasising the lines and contours of his lean muscular figure as he moved closer to me, his soft delicate hand caressing my face before leaning down to kiss me, brushing my lips with the barest of touches, setting me on fire as he had done on the doorstep to his house. 

His lips were cool to touch but burnt through me with desire. I opened my mouth inviting exploration, my heart beat soaring when his tongue met mine, tantalisingly teasing me with its probing driving me wild. Our lips were locked together driving me into a frenzy. I began to struggle for breath and at that moment Bill pulled away as if some force compelled him to and I heard a faint snicking sound. 

I looked up at him as he now lay on top of me, our naked bodies undulating together in one continuous movement. I did not even remember lying down or him mounting me so consumed by our kisses that I was not aware of anything else. I could not help the sharp intake of breath when I saw for the first time that Bill’s arousal was total, his fangs fully extended in his excitement, he was faintly rumbling and trying desperately to remain in control. 

A sudden wave of darkness came rushing over me, I wanted this dark creature, and I wanted to become darkness with him. I did not want to be made love to, I wanted to be taken and taken in the most fundamental brutal way. Lying on top of me, the full length of his hardness pressed against me, rubbing me, I was drenched in my own silky wetness, each undulation making me throb painfully, aching to feel him inside me, tingling spasms of need rushing down my core. I did not know how much longer I could bear this, my own movements in rhythm with his becoming more abandoned and forceful as I drove myself harder against him, my body begging to be entered, pleading for a sweet release.

Reaching very deliberately, I shifted slightly and raised my hips, guiding his painfully swollen member into me. The touch of my hand had made him gasp loudly and I felt, rather than heard the guttural growl in his chest as he thrust into me for the first time then, as we became consumed by that unmistakeable feeling of lust and craving, he thrust with ever increasing movement and force. This was a darkness I had never experienced before and at that moment, more than anything I wanted to succumb to it.

I surrendered all normal reality, only this coupling existed. I did not care for the morals of my time, to hell with the attitudes and condemnation of society, this was all that mattered. Despite the immorality of the happenings in Europe and across the world at the time, an unmarried woman having sex was still considered to be wanton and she was somewhat of a pariah. Had society known that this was not just an act of a man and a woman but a woman and a creature of darkness, my condemnation would have been complete of that I am sure. There was no tolerance for loose ways but for this, there would be total abhorrence. 

It all meant nothing to me, how could it when I was in the arms of a lover that made me feel like a truly sensuous woman in every sense of the word, for the first time in my adult life.

Wrapping my legs around him, he plunged even deeper with a greater urgency than I had thought possible, then I felt it rushing towards me, the ripple that is to become a wave of boiling ecstasy and I could no longer hold back. Bill felt it too and for one split second hesitated, staring me straight in the eyes as if asking permission. ‘Yes, oh please, yes,’ my voice was no more than a breathless whisper. My body responded with ripple after ripple of shuddering climax as he sank his fangs into my neck, sucking me into him and we rode into the darkness as one, my spasms drinking in his seed till he was spent.

I lay on my back panting, fighting to get my breath and slow my heartbeat, shock waves sending spasmodic electric impulses through me making me twitch. I was shaking as tiny tears oozed from the corners of my eyes. Bill gently wrapped his arm around me to cradle me. ‘I am sorry, I am so sorry. I got carried away. Have I hurt you?’ his voice soft and full of the same awkward emotional turmoil that I was feeling. Alarmed at my tears he began to kiss them away. I could not speak yet, I was too overwhelmed with the emotions flooding through me, too embarrassed to tell this creature of the dark that I had never felt this way before and I wanted more, I wanted to feel this way again and again.

With his arms cradling me I began to get more control over myself and felt him relaxing too. We lay there not speaking, we didn’t need to. I did not know if this was something that Bill did on a regular basis but instinct told me that it was not his normal way of existing. I was no fool, being Heinrich’s business partner and knowing him for nearly all my life, I knew of his creature character traits but not intimately. I was aware and accepting of him, just as my father had been but as for his sexual appetites and the intricacies of his feeding rituals, that never entered into my head, not even now as an adult. Yes I had seen Heinrich’s fangs bared but only on a few very limited occasions and then it had been under extreme anger, so seeing Bill as I had done tonight, it did not scare me although with any other vampire apart from Heinrich or Bill, it would. 

Others I am sure would be shocked by this revelation but then, as I have said, they would be morally outraged that I had sex, let alone with Bill. I did not care. Lying here in his arms, my breathing calmed now and feeling totally at peace, what did it matter to me what others thought? I had not planned this, I had never done this before, gone with anyone that I had just met but then, I had never been attracted as deeply as I was to him from the moment that I first saw him. I had no idea what Bill thought of me for doing this; I hoped that he did not think this was something that was par for the course for me because it wasn't and I did want his respect. For some reason, this above everything else mattered to me the most. 

While thinking all of this I was absent mindedly running my fingers through the soft downy hair on his chest, curling it gently around my fingers playfully. His skin was so soft to touch; cool and sensuous, smooth and silky with a creamy pale pallor, Bill’s dark hair accentuating the cobalt blue of his eyes. To say that he was good looking would be an understatement of epic proportions and I could not but help pinch myself to find that I was here in this position with a creature as beautiful as him. I felt a sudden rush of longing for him spread through me again just thinking about him and what I had just experienced, something that I could not fight or still in myself, something that seemed to take over my body and permeate my soul. 

I turned my head and searched for his cool lips, kissing him softly at first then as his tongue began to explore again, I was overcome with lust and my kisses became more abandoned, more urgent in their need. I did not know then that in taking my blood he could feel what I felt, it was not something that I could ever have imagined possible. As I lay in his arms feeling his cool skin pressed against me, the soft hair of his chest, his tight muscular body, his elegant hands with his long sensuous fingers gently stroking me, soothingly running up and down my hot skin, my flesh obeyed my desires and my passion fully awoke again. I felt Bill jerk as the spark in me lit a fire in him, his arousal having a life of its own, he was pressing his body against me harder, making his desires clear. 

He was as needy as I was and gently, he rolled me onto my side facing away from him, slipping his arm beneath my neck while wrapping his leg over me. With his free hand he pulled me firmly into him, his hardness against me making me want him even more. I wanted to feel him in me again but instead he continued to tease and torture me as he rocked harder, his stiff member rubbing my skin provoking me, his hand caressing my flesh as he held me pinned to him, fingers slowly running down my stomach and hips until he slipped two long beautiful fingers into my wetness. 

I groaned aloud at the touch, it was too much. I was frantic and needed him now. Bill of course, could feel me close to my breaking point and knew expertly how to tease, taking me to the brink then pulling back just in time but I knew that it would not be long before he too could not hold back and with each prolonged moment he was closer to his climax. ‘Please, please Bill’ I begged, my body almost shuddering with the need to feel him in me. He began kissing my shoulder blades and started working his way up towards my neck, each touch of his mouth arousing me even more, then shifting a little I felt his hardness slide between my legs and he began gently thrusting, each time pulling back as he came a little closer to gliding into me. 

This was further torment to my already aching body and I groaned loudly, the sound of the lust in my voice making his shaft jump. It was more than he could take and with a forceful thrust he mercifully glided into me, his chest rumbling as his movements increased in their urgency, his free hand delicately cupping me, teasing me with the tip of his finger. I could not hold back any longer and as my climax began, I felt the sharp stabbing of his fangs that sent me so wild. In that moment of insane intensity I bit into his arm resting wrapped under my neck and I began licking at the small wound, imitating his actions. 

I did not know why I had done it but I know the effect it had on Bill as it was almost immediate. He gasped, thrusting even harder and deeper touching something that I had never known or expected and sending me into a place filled with spinning showers of light. Shuddering, I felt him jerk violently as he spilled his seed into me, all the while I continued to lick and suck as gently as a kitten on the tiny wound I had inflicted, his blood tasting surprisingly sweet and thick and some how sensuous, unlike anything that I would have expected. 

We lay recovering for a few minutes arms entwined, legs wrapped together like a puzzle that fitted perfectly, before Bill kissed my shoulder very gently where he had bitten it and for the first time but not the last, he pricked one of his very magical fingers and smeared his blood on me. I had stared with wonder when I had seen that the small tear I had made in his arm had already healed and now I could feel but not see that the puncture wounds on my neck and shoulder were healing. 

Gently he rolled me over to face him and I gazed into his eyes. He found my lips and softly kissed me whispering ‘Thank you.’ He did so with such sincerity, that it touched me as nothing else ever had. The emotion in his voice was so heartbreaking and so very heartfelt and grateful that unexpectedly, tears sprang to my eyes. Here was this dark and dangerous creature that could easily have snapped me in two or drained me to my death and yet here he was thanking me, me who had just experienced the most incredible hours of her life. 

‘Don’t cry, please I didn't mean to make you cry,’ he was saying as he attempted to kiss away my tears but my emotions were too fraught for me to stop. Taking me in his arms he cradled me like a child all the while still softly kissing and soothing me. I did not understand what was happening to me, why my emotions were so out of control but as I gradually felt peace filling me I wondered. ‘Bill, I … I drank your blood. What, what will happen to me?’ I asked trying hard not to sound fearful. 

‘Fabienne, what made you do it?’ he asked as casually as he could. Suddenly I could feel his emotions, hope stirring deep within him, a connection of some sort and a spark of recognition. It was wonderful, I was happy, I was not alone. His eyes widened as though he in turn could feel what I was feeling and he pulled me even closer to him, sighing with almost relief. ‘I wanted to give you something that I felt you had given me,’ I said simply, ‘I wanted you to feel warm again.’ 

If you have ever had a moment in your life that you can look back on and say there, that is the moment my whole life changed, then this was my moment as I gazed into Bill’s eyes and recognised the same loneliness and loss that I felt. And then I knew, as certain as day is night I knew that no matter what, I would never feel alone again.


	8. Chapter 8

Heinrich sat looking at us and he was not happy. I wasn’t sure if this was due to the fact my apartment had been broken into and ransacked or if he could tell from our demeanour that Bill and I had taken his request to become friends a little further than he was comfortable with. I knew that he looked on me as the daughter that he never had and would never have, that is unless he decided to become a maker and that went against his beliefs, but I wasn’t quite sure if he was disappointed in me personally or whether he was worried that Bill had stepped out of line, or he was simply worried over the break in and the other adventures that we had been having since last night.

He said nothing about his suspicions regarding Bill and myself, if he had any that is, and it wasn’t merely my paranoia that made me feel this was as he sat opposite us. He seemed deep in thought. Bill and I sat as we had on the previous evening leaning against each other on the small chaise lounge in Heinrich’s drawing room. The difference tonight to the previous night was palpable. Sitting so close tonight there was electricity going through us. I could feel it through the blood bond that we now shared. Just the touch of our legs against each other did things to me that I had not thought of before and I could feel Bill’s excited reaction to my feelings radiating back through my body. We had touched and been touched and nothing would be the same.

After spending the night in a delight of passion, I had finally fallen asleep in Bill’s arms completely content and spent, awaking hours later to find Bill cold as stone, like a dead thing lying so still and forlorn. His pale face glowing in the darkness of the room with its one small lamp in the corner casting vast shadows through the brass lattice work, patterns spreading across the ceiling like some mad cobweb of light and shade, I wanted nothing more than to hold this beautiful creature and bring him back to life. 

I lay beside him stroking his marble like face, tracing the contours of his cheeks, his sensual mouth, and his angel kissed brows. I wanted his sparkling blue eyes to open and light with the joy and passion of looking at me, to shine with the want and desire they had last night as he felt what I was feeling, to be animated again as they were while we lay in each others arms softly talking of our loneliness, loss and grief and shared experiences of lives spent on our own for so long, only to suddenly find in each other a kindred spirit of sorts, a soul mate in our empty lives. 

I shook my head, this would not do Fabienne I said to myself, come dusk he will awaken and come back to me for however long we are meant to have. I knew this to be true so no more of this. Getting up, I threw on a robe that was hanging on the back of the door. It was purple silk and had Bill’s scent on it. I was embraced in the smell of my lover and loving it. 

Looking around the room I found a candle and lit it then made my way up the darkened stairs, opening the hidden door to explore the rest of the house in the hopes of finding a bathroom and the kitchen. I was famished and I needed to bath and clean up. Wondering through the rooms was yet another revelation for me about the personality of the creature below. I found his good taste was not just confined to the bedroom but every room I entered was as entertaining and delightful as the previous one and equally surprising.

I realised it was late afternoon by the way the light was filtering through the shuttered windows that were closed to keep the heat out of the elegant drawing room. Shafts of deep golden streaks highlighted the dust motes as they floated through the air like a solar system in some super natural novel and lit random glowing patterns of colours on the walls and floor rug.

I found the kitchen but apart from a few utensils and some empty grain jars there was nothing edible to be found. My stomach growled as if in complaint to this news and was not happy at all. There was a sink with running water and filling a glass, I drank thirstily. I was heading back towards the staircase that lead to the upper rooms when I noticed something protruding from under the front door. Quickly picking it up, I found a note addressed to Bill. Slipping this into the pocket of the gown I opened the door and glanced out but could not see anyone near by the entrance. Glancing to the right I noticed a little way down the walkway a man carrying a large basket on his head. 

An aroma of unleavened bread and goat’s cheese assaulted my nostrils making my stomach growl again. I beckoned the street seller over and looking around, I noticed a small bowl on a stand near the door that contained some coins. I blessed Bill for his generous ways, learning later that he kept the bowl by his door full of coins, taking a handful each time he left his house to give to the many beggars and street urchins that roamed the city each trying to eek out an existence under their pitiful circumstances.

I made my way back into the drawing room and then, noticing the doors out into the courtyard I took my rations and sat devouring them in the dying sunshine, accompanied by the tinkling sound of the fountain for company. Sighing contentedly, I chewed on the mouthfuls of creamy salty cheese mixed with the hearty wholesome taste of the wood fired smoky flattened bread, washed down by the clearest coldest water I had ever tasted. It was the best meal I had ever had in my life.

I sat in perfect happiness; the only other thing that would make me happier would be to wash. The heat of the late afternoon had made me sticky and uncomfortable and besides, I wanted to look my best for Bill when he awoke. It was a silly thought, what difference would it make when he had seen me in all my nakedness last night but somehow now, in the day time I felt so … I did not know how to put it into words, I felt feminine and virginal. 

I knew this to be crazy but I felt like a virgin again after her first real experience of the pleasures of life. A shiver went through me when I thought of the previous night and I blushed at the thought of facing Bill again. What would he think of me, would he simply dismiss me as a fling, a night of passion that had sated his thirst for sex and blood to simply discard me as an unexpected conquest in his long life? Would I be nothing but a brief memory if that, a fleeting remembrance of a French delight he had sampled and left behind? I did not know and I did not want to think of that now, I would face the disappointment when it came but in the mean time, I was basking in the afterglow and simply wanted to make the most of it.

So I went back to my exploration of this wonderful escape Bill had created for himself. Apart from a dining room that was obligatory for all homes, even though this one was never to be used, the only other room on this floor was what I took to be Bill’s personal office. Just like him, it was neat as a pin and decorated once again to his exceptional taste. The big oak desk complete with the neatly arranged papers, brass pen and ink stand gleaming and a clean sheet of blotting paper. The large comfortable leather chair sitting behind it waiting for its owner’s return and two deep chesterfield club chairs pulled up on an angle for any guests or business acquaintances completed the scene. It was functional, tasteful and stylish.

Climbing up the stairs to the upper floor I found two bedrooms furnished in a Moroccan style, both equally as beautiful but not as stunningly decorated as Bill’s room, but then I don’t think that anything can ever compare to that room, ever. The tangerine coloured walls and jade and amethyst themes of the first room and the turquoise walls with the sapphire, ebony and silver shades of the second room still paled in comparison to the ambience of the room below. 

Walking down a short hall space to what I thought must be the bathroom, I noticed the last of the light rays dimly shining through the lattice of the window at the end of the corridor and realised that it must be later than I thought. When I came at last to the bathroom I was not surprised to find it to be luxuriously appointed with a sunken bath and even a recess for showering. This was just too tempting and I spent much time lingering under the cascading water, the subtly scented soaps Bill used covering me in an intoxicating blend of sandalwood, patchouli and peony roses. 

I was just enjoying one final moment before stepping out when I felt a strange sensation, like a pulling from within me quickly followed by a moment of alarm that rapidly dissipated into a glow of happiness. It was the strangest of feelings and I did not understand it. Then suddenly, a cool hand reached out and curled its way around my neck pulling me gently backwards. I stifled a small scream that was welling up within me only when I felt delicate lips trailing a line of kisses along the back of my neck. I recognised the sculptured muscles of Bills hips pushing against me, his substantial arousal making its presence felt against my buttocks.

His hand caressed my face as he turned my head to reach my lips, smoothly flicking his cool tongue across them before forcefully parting them to lap at my tongue, probing with a rhythm and leaving me with no doubt about his desired intentions. Gliding smoothly down my body with his free hand, he cupped my breast delicately holding it in his palm while his sensuous fingertips lightly brushed my nipple, teasing it to a hard aching mound. 

I moaned softly but that was just enough for Bill, his hand instantly skimming down my stomach to reach my core and pull me into him. With one hard thrust he glided into my silky wetness, his fingers now sliding into my folds and pinning me to him, holding me and teasing me while his thrusts sent me into another place, one of desire and need for fulfilment. Just as he had the night before, he slid his fangs into me as he felt my sweet release wash over him, skilfully choosing the moment to bite and gently suck, heightening the experience for the both of us. 

Had Bill not still been holding me, embedded in me and his hand cupped to me, I would have fallen into a heap on the shower floor so powerful was my climax, leaving me weak and shaken, panting and disorientated. Carefully he withdrew from me but continued to hold me, supporting me with one hand while he reached for the soap and gently began to lather it all over my breasts, slowly moving his hands in circular motions working his way down my stomach and hips.

With the slightest of touches he slipped his hand between my thighs, the soap frothing and foaming. Slowly and deliberately he washed me, lightly brushing that special spot that gave so much delight but this was not a sexual act my friends, he was genuinely caring for me, holding me in his arms and bathing me. Every stroke of his gentle fingers washed more than my body, it cleansed my heart and my soul of all the loneliness and self-doubt I had lived with all my adult life. 

The moment was filled and brimming over with such tenderness, so much consideration as to provoke feelings that were unaccustomed to me that I was not even sure if I knew fully what I was feeling. Quite simply I felt cared for. Any doubts I may have had earlier in the day about how he would react to me when he arose vanished into the ether to be blown across the universe into the nether reaches of my mind. I knew then what I had wanted to believe was true, Bill was truly a caring gentle soul, as lost in this crazy world as I was, and wanting to connect. 

Regaining my strength, I took the soap from his hands and turning to face him began to massage his chest, lathering my hands then running the slippery suds through is silky chest hair, Bill groaning a little as I did so. ‘Fabienne, as much as I could stand here all night and do this and trust me, I could,’ he smirked, ‘I think that it is time that I went to work. They will be expecting me at The Purple Veil by 10 o’clock this evening for a late set. I am sorry but we can meet after if you would like or….’ he hesitated before smiling almost shyly, ‘if you would like to, you could come to the club with me before we go to talk to Heinrich?’ he questioned as though he thought that I may not even consider this proposal as acceptable. Smiling with delight I hugged him. ‘Bill, I would love that. I would love to hear you sing’. 

After we both finished rinsing, Bill lifted me out the shower to stand me on the thick Flokati rug next to the bath while he carefully dried me off with the softest of towels. If he had not had to go to work I don’t think we would have ever left the bathroom. The sensuality of his gentle movements as he dried my skin, reaching into folds and crevices that no one had ever previously touched, well I admit the fire he had set last night burned just as brightly and again I felt the need for his body to quench it. But it could wait, there would be other times. I knew this in my heart now, so I sat on the side of the low sunken bath and watched as he dried himself off. He was not self-conscious in the least I am glad to say, and it was just as well as I could not take my eyes off him.

‘When I woke and you weren’t there I thought…’ he hesitated a little before he continued as he dried himself off. ‘You thought what?’ I asked eagerly, my heart racing. He smiled shyly, ‘I thought that you had gone. I thought that perhaps you may have been well….scared off,’ he said quietly. ‘Bill, last night was the most wonderful night of my life,’ I responded immediately and without thinking, as I stood there feeling myself going red. ‘It was me who thought that you perhaps would not want to see me or you would simply consider me to be one of many in your bed.’

‘Fabienne,’ he said in a way that drove me crazy, ‘I told you, I have never bought another woman here.’ He held up his hand to stop me as I was about to speak. ‘I have had sex with other women, but not recently, not here, and it was sex and that’s all. Last night what we did, for me it was not sex,’ he looked me full in the eyes, ‘I made love to you Fabienne and I want to make love to you again and again. You said that you wanted to make me feel warm and you have. You have given me something that I have not had since my human life was taken from me and I never thought that I would have ever again. You are the first woman that I have had since I was turned that made me feel like a man again, a human man again.’ 

He had bowed his head as he said this and slightly turned away from me but his words so touched me I reached across to him. His eyes were red rimmed with unshed tears as I looked into them searching for confirmation of the truth and finding it there. The tragedy of all those long empty years was plainly written on his face. I no longer doubted him or felt insecure; I knew he was not merely using me for gratification, and happiness and relief flooded through me. 

Bill sensed that of course and I was glad to see the small curve to his lips as he smiled awkwardly at me. ‘I thought that you had gone and for a moment I was lost, but then I saw your clothes and knew that you could not have gone far and besides… I could feel you and knew you were here somewhere close by and I was glad that you had stayed.’

I smiled. ‘I am glad that I did too and I will for as long as you want me,’ I said gently to him as he touched my cheek and softly kissed the top of my head. ‘Come on we have to get dressed if I am ever going to get to work,’ he laughed as he continued to dry off. 

When finished, he handed me the purple robe I had left hanging on the side of the bath and it was not until I was putting it on that I felt the note I had slipped into the pocket earlier in the day. As we walked back to the bedroom to dress, I explained to Bill how I had found it pushed under the door and looked out to find no one there so I was not able to tell him how long it had been there. Bill opened it and read as we walked. 

The note was from George the owner of The Purple Veil he told me. George had sent a warning to Bill that there had been some men making enquiries about him, they had come barging their way into the club earlier in the afternoon when Claude was stocking the bar and Sasha, the Austrian pastry chef had been baking in the kitchen. 

When Claude had said they were closed they had asked when Bill would be in and implied that they were old friends merely catching up for old times sakes but there was something about them that did not impress Claude, he did not believe it for one moment. Sasha was watching and listening from the kitchen and had told George later that there was no mistaking it, these men were Germans.

‘Bill do you know who these men are, are they friends of yours?’ I asked him somewhat shocked. Bill was standing perfectly still, holding the note in his hands. He looked so serious for all that he stood there naked. ‘I have no idea who they are but Fabienne, I mean to find out and I have the feeling that I will need to find out in a hurry,’ he said quietly, so quietly in fact and with such menace in his voice that I was taken aback. 

‘Bill what is it, what are you thinking?’ my voice full of alarm. He looked at me now as if realising that his attitude had frightened me and he put his arm around me to soothe me. ‘Come, lets get dressed and get to the club then we will talk to Heinrich once I have finished for the night. But you have to promise me you will let Sasha spoil you with his pastries and you will sit near me so that I can see you. I don’t want you out of my sight,’ he smiled as he bent down and kissed the top of my head again.

His arm around me was comforting but his words were not. ‘Bill, what is it…what are you alarmed about?’ I asked with trepidation. Bill looked into my eyes and seemed to make up his mind before answering. ‘Fabienne, your apartment was broken into, they are searching for the scroll I suspect and you may be in danger. Amongst collectors, I have a certain reputation because of my interests, if as we think the scroll may lead us to something that is profound or, even if others only thought it was the map to a yet undiscovered treasure, then that would be more than enough to generate interest in my whereabouts.’

‘It would not be hard to put two and two together and see a connection between me and your Father’s business and now you. No matter how careful I have been, just my being here in Morocco and in the same city as you and Heinrich would no doubt draw attention and lead them to both of us. I have been thinking this over and it is not too far fetched, not under the times we are living in, it’s desperate times Fabienne,’ he finished.

‘Come on, we can talk more about this later at Heinrich’s but you must take this threat seriously, we don’t know what we are up against yet but I have the feeling it is not pleasant and it is something that we need to take a great deal of care with.’ We dressed in silence. I was glad that Bill had bought a change of clothes packed neatly in my bag. How he had even thought to do this I don’t know but he was a creature full of surprises and considerations. He seemed to know a lot about how women thought and felt and I wondered aloud about this to him. 

He told me with a laugh that he had grown up with a sister and then a wife and how in his day, good manners and courtesy towards the fairer sex was a mark of the man, gallantry and respect being par for the course. I sighed at the thought of those lost days, it seemed to me that it was a much more civilised way of living, more pleasant and definitely more satisfying to be treated in such a way but no doubt I was only seeing it through rose coloured glasses.

As Bill was to tell me later, no matter how genteel the times were, it did not make one iota of difference to the young men that lay dead from yet another war in that long ago time. Nothing changes, will nothing ever change, we both wondered? But right now, that seemed far away for me.

I was dressed in the dress that Bill had so casually thrown into my bag. It was white crepe, silver coloured slithers of glass beading across the yoke in a V shape cascading down to my waist from the cowl neck, a matching scattering of shimmering silver beads on each sleeve flowing down from the top of the cleverly cut away pieces on the top of each, falling softly down in two draped scoops to match the cowled neckline. It was a dress that I loved, that I had always felt good in and tonight with Bill on my arm, I walked on air as we made our way to the club. 

No matter what the future held for me, for us, this would be a night that I felt I would never want to forget.


	9. Chapter 9

The Purple Veil was crowded as we walked in to be greeted with pleasure by the maitre de, Raoul. I stood with some pride as I realised that the crowd was there primarily to be seen in the right place but also because Bill’s reputation as an entertainer had spread amongst the European and Anglo communities. I also noticed that just about every woman in the whole of the club seemed only to have eyes for Bill, and who could blame them. Dressed in a white dinner jacket, black bow tie, white shirt and black pants with a purple silk cumber band neatly hugging his slim waist, he looked so stylish and handsome. 

Speaking quietly to Raoul, who seemed to understand immediately, we waited over at the bar while he set up a small table for two next to the piano so I would be within Bill’s sight the whole time he was playing. Bill introduced me to Claude and I immediately entered into a deep conversation about out native homeland, talking of Paris with love and longing for the days before the war, the whole time Bill’s eyes never leaving my face as he watched my animation. 

Claude and I had just began to touch on the patriotic attempts by our beloved resistance when Bill suddenly looked as though he was about to speak but was interrupted by the arrival of George. He was looking somewhat worried and requested to speak to him privately. Assuring me that he would not be long and that Claude would take care of me in his absence, Bill headed for George’s office. 

In Bill’s absence Claude and I continued our discussions keeping our voices low. Talk of the resistance was not to be shared amongst those unknown, trust was the most important commodity of these times and judgement, a thoughtless word to the wrong person could lead to the demise of innocent lives and that was something that I did not want to be responsible for. 

Claude shared with me the story of Kceniya and I felt his sorrow, I could feel his pain and it tore through me. It was during a lull in our talk, as he attempted to pull himself together a little, that I noticed a man that had been standing at the end of the bar when I had first begun our conversation. He had gradually made his way closer and although I could not be sure, I had the distinct impression that he was deliberately listening to every word we were saying. I don’t know what it was about him but I felt an unmistakeable dislike for him, something was making me feel apprehensive about his proximity to me.

He was dressed in a black dinner suit and fitted in with the crowd yet there was something menacing and cold about his pale beady washed out eyes behind the wire frame glasses he was wearing that was out of context with his short blonde hair and smarmy features. His podgy face was blank like a mask, no emotion and no feelings provided any animation what so ever. He looked cold and calculating and not to be trusted. He also looked European but not one of the regular Anglos or tourist types that make up the small community here. No, there was something about him that I could not put into words but I knew that he just did not fit here.

Claude noticed my stare and abruptly changed the subject. Even though we had been speaking in fluent French, he immediately swung over to English and began a light hearted conversation about the weather. I understood straight away and played along with it. Claude too had his suspicions, raising his eyebrows in a questioning gesture. 

Leaving me to my drink for the moment, he casually made his way along the bar wiping up and arranging coasters. When he came to our ‘Blonde friend’ he asked if he would like a top up. ‘Schnapps,’ he barked back loud enough for me to hear an unmistakable accent spraying from his mouth. So, I could only junp to one conclusion and assume rightly or wrongly by his accent and his manner and my gut feeling, that this man could be some kind of a colleague to those visitors today and I admit the thought left me cold and in fear for Bill and myself. 

In the mean time Bill was in George’s office deep in conversation about the events of this afternoon. There was not much that went on in Marrakech that George did not know about. He did not know why these men were looking for Bill but as he told him, he had no doubts that the long arm of the war had its fingers in many pies and if Bill was in any kind of trouble then he would help him.

For outward appearances George was neutral but unknown to most, he was fiercely patriotic to the allied cause. He had lost family, he did not speak of this to anyone, he kept these details to himself but if push came to shove and he was forced to take a stand, then he would not hesitate to show his true colours.

‘I do not know what or why they are looking for you but they are and I have no doubt they will stop at nothing to find you. These people they are ruthless and have no fear, they show nothing but contempt for the values of human life. I have seen it before and do not underestimate their abilities my friend. Take care Bill, good piano players are hard to come by,’ he laughed to lighten his words but the meaning was clear.

‘And Bill, I will do what ever I can to keep you safe. I have a lot of contacts within the authorities here, many owe me favours for certain services I have provided, and I have already begun to make enquiries. I do not appreciate anyone coming into my club for these purposes,’ he finished. ‘Go now, do your job as you normally would. If I find anything out I will tell you.’ 

Thanking him, Bill made his way back to me at the bar. As Bill walked from the office he could feel my unease and coming up from behind me he wrapped his arm around my waist and whispered into my ear, ‘What is it?’ To anyone watching it would merely have appeared that he was laying a gentle kiss to the side of my face and as he pulled back he gazed into my eyes. Looking up at him I moved my eyes slightly in the blonde’s direction and Bill gave an imperceptible nod of his head as he leaned in to mock kiss my face again whispering quietly, ‘We need to be careful.’

Turning to Claude, he smiled and ordered tonic water for himself and another Daiquiri for me to follow the one that I had already downed hurriedly in my nervousness.

As Claude fixed our drinks, Bill asked if Sasha was still in the kitchen and told Claude we would pay him a visit, asking him to take our drinks to our table when ready. He escorted me through the rear of the bar and out through the service passage to the kitchen. As soon as we were out of sight of the blonde, Bill told me all that George had spoken of before asking if I had ever seen this blonde before. When I said no but that I had a really bad feeling about him, he agreed. ‘Just be careful and I don’t want you out of my sight, have you got that? Even if you have to powder your cute little nose, you tell me and I will arrange for Yvonne our hatcheck girl to go with you,’ he said determinedly. 

‘Bill do you really think that is necessary, I mean we are in the middle of a crowded club what could possibly happen here?’ I asked him. Bill shook his head at me. ‘Just say that you will be careful all right. I don’t want anything happening to you,’ he was saying this as he nuzzled me with his nose and lightly kissed my lips. ‘Ah, sweet young love,’ a heavily accented voice called out teasingly, breaking our kiss. Bill turned and taking my hand walked me a few paces out of the small hallway and into the kitchen to introduce me to Sasha. 

‘Mr Willem here has the excellent taste,’ Sasha’s heavy accent greeted me as he kissed both cheeks. He was in his late sixties, rotund and jovial but wore the look of one that had suffered as so many did in these days of trouble. ‘Come, I will give for you my most delicious strudel and you will sit and swoon with all the other ladies as our handsome Willem plays and sings his music for you. I am understanding that by now you have heard of our little visitors of this afternoon?’ he said turning to Bill, the jovial smile totally missing as he said this. 

‘George has told me. You are sure, completely sure they were German?’ Bill queried. ‘I am an Austrian, I can tell. Yes, there was no mistaking this for me.’ ‘And you had never seen these men before, never seen them hanging around for instance?’ Sasha quickly replied, ‘No and I know that Claude had not seen such a thing either as we both talked on this. He is like me, he has no love of these peoples.’

Thanking Sasha for his kindness, we made our way out to the table that was now ready and waiting for us. We sat down and Bill pretended to sip at his drink while he scanned the club for the mysterious blonde before seeing him sitting a little way across from our table. Keeping his voice low and warning me not to look in that direction, he told me where he was as he asked me to keep an eye out for anything that I might find odd while he played his set, squeezing my hand as he got up to move to the piano. 

Looking around at the crowd, I found it was an interesting blend of the Anglos and Europeans here for whatever reasons. Some had been here long before the troubles that plagued the world had even commenced, others were here because they had no where else to go and were stuck waiting with diminishing hope for papers, real or fake, their meagre belongings fitting in one suitcase, a testament to their hurried departures from homelands they were not sure if they would ever see again.

Then there were others who had thought to profit from the current circumstances and made a living trading on the hopes and dreams of those who had fled. They were generally oily little men in crumpled dated suits, smelling of mothballs and cheap cologne, living just one step ahead of the law. They were known to the authorities and were kept under surveillance. George allowed them free range of the club and the small gaming room knowing that at the first sign of trouble he only had to make a simple call to his good friend the chief of the police, who was generally ensconced in the gaming room anyway, and was frequently winning large amounts at George’s expense. 

George did not mind this, in fact he encouraged these wins. He was, as I have said before, a very astute business man and he knew that putting out money was a good investment when it meant a blind eye would be turned to his little gambling room for instance or, that when anything cropped up such as today’s unwanted and intrusive visitors, well he only had to call on his good friend the commissioner for assistance and help would be there.

It was certainly a cosmopolitan meeting and melting pot of all nationalities, cultures and classes. Everyone who was anyone in the city seemed to be here tonight and I felt so much pride to think that Bill was partially responsible. Word had definitely spread about the entertainer at The Purple Veil and where as before Bill got there it had been the place to be, now it was unquestionably the only place to be in Marrakech. 

The lights dimmed and a soft pink spotlight came on, shining on Bill and the piano. He looked the most handsome of creatures and again I was struck by the fact that there was not one single woman in the whole club who’s eyes were not drawn to him with longing and, if I was not mistaken, with lust too. A warm round of applause greeted him as he had sat down and commenced playing. I had never, of course, heard him sing and was as totally mesmerised, just as everyone else in the club was when he did. Even Sasha came from the kitchen, standing at the side of the bar with Claude, listening to his friend ‘Willem’ playing.

Bill told me when on his break that he had chosen to change a few of the songs tonight from his regular routine and he had done so, he said, just for me. He was holding my hand and casually stroking my fingers as he said this but through the bond that we had, I could feel a lot more meaning to what he was saying and it made me blush. I could also see that there were a lot of eyes watching us and they were not all female. 

The ‘blonde’ was still sitting at the small table near us but seemed not to be paying any particular attention and for that I was thankful but like Bill, I knew that it was not smart to become too relaxed or complacent, the broody menace that I had felt earlier was still there like a lingering thing hanging over us. But for all of the bad feeling I had about this stranger, nothing could take away the moment. I was lost to this place and time and Bill knew it.

‘You look beautiful,’ he said as he leaned across and whispered into my ear. Blushing furiously I could do nothing but sit and gaze into his eyes, they were twinkling with amusement at my reactions to his attentions. I was not used to this from any man but from him, my body just melted with the effect and he knew it, he could feel it and he gave a chuckle as if reading my very thoughts. It made me laugh too. ‘You know you are so bad doing this to me don’t you?’ I told him smiling. ‘But you enjoy it and I enjoy seeing your reactions,’ he laughed again, ‘you can’t hide your feelings from me, you know that.’ 

I was surprised by this and becoming serious I assured him, ‘No, I would never hide my feelings from you. I do not believe in doing that. I want to be totally honest with you. If you ever think that I am not, please tell me. For me, there have been too many secrets in this world. If my Father had told me earlier about …,’ here I dropped my voice, I did not want anyone over hearing the conversation, ‘if he had told me about the scroll, I could have helped him and who knows, things may have been different.’

Bill looked at me thoughtfully. I could not tell what he was thinking. ‘Fabienne,’ Bill said gently squeezing my hand, ‘you can’t change the past. Your Father went when he did because it was his time. I am sure that there would have been nothing that you could do that would have changed that, just like I am sure that you loved him and he loved you and you both knew it. You miss him don’t you?’ he asked gently. 

I nodded with tears in my eyes. ‘Yes, I do miss him but I look at Heinrich as sort of a foster father and that helps. He was so close to my father and had it not been for him, I may not have had him for as long as I did.’ He looked at me with understanding and I thought then what it must have been like for him to have lost everyone in his life, not just one person but everyone he had ever loved and known. I could understand why he had once said that he did not consider himself to be alive, how could you when you had that kind of shock to deal with, let alone the grief of losing everyone. 

When Bill resumed his set, he dedicated it to ‘Paris before the war,’ knowing full well that to our blonde friend, if he was in anyway associated with today’s visitors then this would be inflammatory and give him a message too. I was proud of Bill, he seemed to relish this perceived threat and the only fly in the ointment was his concern for my welfare and for the safe retrieval of the scroll. The more I came to know of this creature, the more I thought of him as such a selfless man. He was a better man than most of the ones that I had come across and my respect for him just grew with every hour that I got to know and spend time with him. 

For the rest of the evening at the club however, I have to admit that I forgot everything else and was transported away to another world, a world full of music and the most beautiful, melodic voice I had ever heard singing some of the most wonderfully romantic songs. As Bill introduced each song he would softly touch his cheek as he had told me that he would. He had said that would be a sign to me and no one else that as he sang, he would be singing to me. As far as he was concerned there would be no one else in the room besides us. 

He had melted my heart when he said this. It was hard for me to believe that someone as attractive and sought after as he was by other women would chose to feel this way, to be so very tender towards me for who was I, in my eyes I was nothing compared to some of the women who, despite Bill sitting holding my hand, these others still felt attracted enough to stop at the table on his break with requests for songs as a shallow excuse to make their interest known. 

I sat and I listened and I was mesmerised and deeply touched by the selections he had chosen. I knew from what he had said that they really had a meaning for him and therefore for us, so I paid particular attention to the lyrics even though it took the greatest of effort on my part not to let my eyes wander to his eyes, his mouth or his sensitive hands while his delicate fingers glided smoothly over the beautiful ivory and ebony keys as played each note. 

He started off his next set with the beautifully haunting Glen Miller tune Moonlight Serenade, little knowing that within a few years this talented fine musician would go missing and become yet another casualty of this war. He followed this up with Night and Day and I’ve Got You Under My Skin and As Time Goes By, but it was the next few songs that he had never sung in public before and these, he said, were for me and only for me, vowing he would never sing them if I was not there with him to hear him. 

These last two songs of the night left the crowded club applauding for all their worth and left me rather breathless and speechless. Looking straight at me he sang the very beautiful - At Last, then followed straight into My Prayer, to calls of more from the crowd. Bill looked across at me and rolled his eyes, touched his face and launched into Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, which bought the crowd to its feet. Embarrassed now, Bill waved his hand and gave a small nod to the audience before coming over to join me. 

‘You were ….’ I was lost for words, ‘Bill you were just wonderful,’ my eyes were shining as I spoke. He was looking very humble and embarrassed and just a little pleased as he sat down, leaning over unexpectedly and kissing my cheek before looking around to see where our ‘friend’ was. 

‘He’s gone,’ Bill said quietly to me. I looked around and realised that while Bill had been singing the last song he must have left without me noticing. I had been so engrossed, it’s not everyday someone sings to you and particularly if that someone is Bill. ‘I’m sorry, I should have been paying more attention,’ I said rather crestfallen, not that it would’ve made any difference had I seen him leave but we could only assume that he was gone for the night and that was the last of it.

‘Come on, we should be going too. Heinrich will be expecting us. I sent him a note earlier via George; he has a few street urchins that run favours for him so Heinrich knows that we will be there soon.’ Saying good night to Claude and Raoul who were the only ones left in the club now, Bill and I made our way into the street heading for the main square, then on to Heinrich’s.

Bill noticed that it was unusually deserted for this time of night, the club patrons having already dispersed and were well on their way to their homes or for one last night cap at the lower class dive of George’s rival, Alexus Romanoff the proprietor of The Black Camel Club. As we walked through the streets on our way to the famous town square, Heinrich’s home being on the other side, Bill wrapped his arm around my waist protectively. 

Just as we got near the entrance of the square he stopped abruptly and pulled me into the shadows. I looked at him alarmed and was about to speak when I heard the faint snick of his fangs popping and he quickly put his hand over my mouth to silence me. I had not heard or seen a thing but with his sensitive hearing and sight, I knew not to question him, he had heard something and that was frightening to me. Whispering into my ear as silently as only he could, he told me to stay where I was and not move, then he was gone. 

I waited for what seemed like an eternity but in reality it must have been only a few minutes. I had seen the blur of Bill as he sped into the square then, from a distance, I had thought I had heard a soft muffled moan followed by some scuffling and a dull thud, then there was a strange grating sound as though something heavy and metallic had been lifted and dragged across stones. I could not place what this sound was nor from which direction it was coming from. 

Holding my breath I peeked around the edge of the building and into the dark square. There was no one there and nothing in it. It was empty. A wave of fear ripped through me, rushing down to my stomach making it twitch. The hair stood up on my arms and my legs shook. Although it was dark, I could still see the whole of the square and all the edges of the buildings, even in to the murky shadows and still I could see nothing and no one. 

There was no place to hide, no doorways or darkened entrances. The only other exit to the square lay exactly opposite where I stood and it was back lit by lanterns from a late night café further down that way so, where was Bill and what was going on?


	10. Chapter 10

Uncertainty was gripping me. I had no idea what to do. Bill had said to stay where I was but I felt vulnerable now that I could not see him and the square had a deserted, eerie feeling that crept through me and frightened me.

There was something not right and I was afraid and puzzled too. I had felt a huge adrenalin rush after Bill had left me, then a flash of something that I could not describe because I had never felt it in my life. If I could put it into words it was almost, but not quite…justifiable satisfaction and I did not understand it. 

While I stood there contemplating what to do, I felt rather than saw a movement in the air behind me. Before I could move, a hand roughly grabbed me, pinning my arms to me whilst long fingers clamped across my mouth, stifling the scream that had risen in my throat. 

Fear for Bill’s safety spun through my mind, coursing through my body as I tried to breath. This could not be happening. I did not care particularly for my own safety, all I could do was think of Bill and what may have happened to him, wondering what kind of creature could have overpowered him otherwise he would be here with me and this would not be happening to me. I was so sure of him or thought that I was that I knew nothing would keep him from feeling the fear I was experiencing right at that moment, our bond was already so close that it must be something bad to have kept him from my side. 

Was I to loose him now just as I had found him, when I had just discovered what it is like to feel like a real woman for the first time in my life, to care for some one so much that it hurt not to be with them every waking moment of the day. I had told myself that it was ridiculous to have these feelings so soon after meeting. This is not rational and I had always considered myself to be a sensible person but I have heard it said that love cannot be explained, it can come gradually over a life time or, as is in my case, it can be unexpected like a bolt of lightening hitting you and making you throw caution to the wind. 

That was how I had felt really from the moment I first saw him wasn’t it, if I was truly being honest. There was something about this creature that had stuck me as extraordinary. For all his smooth sophisticated outward appearance there was an underlying layer of vulnerability that I had thought I recognised in him. Perhaps it was because I had the same trait it made it easy for me to see through the polished outer shell that he had created for himself and showed to the world, but I felt that there was something more to him than just that. 

All these thoughts went flashing through my head in mere seconds. Maybe it is true that when you are dying or in fear, your life flashes before your eyes. It would explain why I was feeling this way. At the same time, I was trying hard to think of where Bill could be and what had happened to him, tears springing to my eyes at the thought of him lying broken and bleeding or worse. 

No, I could not think like that. I could not bear to think of his body lying torn and bloody or even more monstrous was the thought that he no longer existed at all. This was a torment that I could not face or even find possible to picture. Surely if that was the case I would know, I would feel it but I did not know enough about the bond and how it worked. I may have been living amongst these creatures since I was a child but my ignorance of that side of things was profound. Why had I not thought to ask Bill about this before, perhaps if I had I would know how to be aware of things and it may have been a help to him but now, was it all too late I asked myself.

It was this last thought that was my undoing. Unshed tears spilled from my eyes and shuddering sobs were wracking through me. Then as though I was dreaming I heard it, soft and tender whispering in my ear, ‘Fabienne.’ My body stiffened, every muscle taught. What was this, was this some trick of my imagination or was I just willing it to be so?

‘Fabienne,’ it came again, softly and with urgency as cool lips brushed my ear and neck, the grip on my mouth loosening as I realised the familiarity of his body against mine. Turning quickly around he was there, it had been Bill all along holding me to him, his fingers urgently covering my mouth to keep me silent and us safe.

I jumped, my nerves were fraught. ‘What happened… where were you?’ I asked as I folded into his arms with relief. But Bill did not answer me, instead he lifted me gently and moving at Vampire speed, we reached the safety of Heinrich’s home and now here we were, sitting here as we had only the night before. Just one night ago but it seemed like a life time.

‘Bill, what has happened? You told me in your note that Fabienne’s home had been broken into but there is something else, something more than just that?’ Heinrich was frowning as he said this, looking from one to the other of us. Again my thoughts went to a personal level. Did he know, could he tell that we had been together and that for me, my life would never, could never be the same as it was just a short twenty four hours ago? I was crimson faced now thinking of it and I could not look at him. 

‘They were waiting for us in the square,’ Bill said quietly. I gasped and turned to look at him. ‘But Bill, I looked when I was waiting and there was no one, I could not even see you and how was it that you came to me from behind me when you had gone into the square? What happened, you have not told me and I was so scared.’

Bill then recounted how he had heard the men he assumed that had been at the Purple Veil earlier in the day judging by their accents, talking quietly over to the side of the square. They had made their way there knowing that at some stage we would have to pass through it as the club was on the other side of the city to our respective homes. The blonde from the club must have alerted his colleagues that we would soon be leaving as the floor show was over and the club was due to close. He must have rendezvoused with them. 

He told us that apart from the blonde, there were three others in the square whose descriptions had matched those that Claude and Sasha had given him. He had taken them by surprise and he assured us that they would no longer be a problem for us. Bill said he had not had a lot of time to do a search of the men, fearful of being discovered but he had enough time to quickly go through their pockets and take their wallets, which included the mandatory identification papers everyone now was obliged to carry. 

Leaning forward he emptied out his jacket pockets laying four wallets on the small table in front of us. Heinrich and Bill set out pouring through them, even tearing the lining apart, leaving nothing unsearched. The results, although they did not really surprise, they did send a chill through me. The identity papers were immaculate, all in order and beyond reproach, pristine in condition and surprisingly new. As we suspected, they were all of German extraction and of various innocuous occupations, a librarian, dentist, salesman and a barber. 

Even as naïve as I am, I could not picture the blonde podgy faced club patron to be any of these. They were under cover of course which meant only one thing; they were working for the government or some affiliated organization. There was one other thing that the search turned up, it was only small and looked to be of no consequence, it was a scrap of paper hidden in the lining of one of the wallets. It merely said ‘The Ankh of Ptah’ and was followed by a question mark that was all. 

The look on Bill’s face was one of incredulity and Heinrich, who had been sitting with a passive face despite the revelations the wallets had produced, well now his face matched Bill’s. His eyes shone with a strange light and as he looked at Bill, he smiled the smallest of smiles. Bill’s response was the same, the corners of his mouth curving up in the tiniest of creases and his eyes shone with a brilliant blue. I did not know what they were thinking and at that moment I did not care. There were still more important questions to be answered as far as I was concerned. 

‘Bill, please you still haven’t told me, what did you do with them?’ I asked with some trepidation, ‘there was no one in the square when I looked, what became of the men and where did you go?’ He looked at me and I could see some kind of internal debate going on within him. Heinrich was watching both of us too and he had an odd look on his face, one of almost pity, as though he understood what it was that Bill was thinking and he felt sorry for younger vampire. I did not understand this and it made me wonder. Bill seemed to make up his mind after a tremendous struggle and looking me in the eyes he told me. He had killed them and had fed from them. 

I should have been horrified. Any other woman would have run from the room and as far away as possible or fainted or I don’t know what, but I did none of those things. Heinrich had saved my father and because of that I had come to know of these other creatures in our world. I knew there was darkness in them, I was not stupid but there is darkness in humans too and that darkness was playing it’s self out on the battles fields all over the world. How could I condemn Bill for what he had done when I had felt the menace permeating off our blonde friend?

I was basically a pragmatist. What other choices did Bill have? If he had done nothing then more than likely they could have endangered not just my life as a human, but perhaps put Bill and Heinrich in a position of exposure and that was something that could not happen. The world was an intolerant place to be in right now, we were witnessing that on a massive scale, and so if you threw the exposure of another creature into the mix what would have been the effect? I shuddered at the possibilities and none I thought of were good.

What of the wider repercussions? Would those older vampires in the world take sides? What if they were to join forces with ….oh no, I could not even contemplate what evil may befall the world if vampires were forced into the open and to take a stance at that particular time of history. It was unthinkable and intolerable. It could not and must not happen. 

The other debateable point to this situation was also clear cut to me. Bill and Heinrich never killed their feeds. It was not in either of them. Bill had suffered so cruelly under Lorena’s tutelage he had confided to me that he would prefer to starve than to kill an innocent. But these four were not innocents and as I said to myself to justify the position I was taking, they were dead and by feeding on them it would spare more innocents, even though Bill had told me that he glamoured his ‘victims’ as he put it, after feeding. He did not like it. He did not want to do it but he did it to spare them the horrendous memories they would have if he didn’t and I am sure that Heinrich, being a pious man in his human life, if not somewhat wanton, never the less he spared his victims too. 

I had felt the fear Bill was feeling when he told me what he had done and without thinking I had taken his hand and stroked it to allay any concerns to my reactions. The simple touch of my hand on his had calmed him, I could feel the relief flooding through him then I suddenly realised that Heinrich was a witness to this small display of emotions and I turned to him, no longer afraid of his reaction and I smiled and deliberately leaned in closer to Bill laying my head on his shoulder as though in challenge to any objections that he may have. 

But I was surprised. He smiled a genuinely warm and encouraging smile and it was Bill’s turn now to feel the relief pouring from me through the bond. He in turn wrapped his arm around me and gently stroked my hair as if to say to the older vampire, she is Mine. I don’t think that I had ever felt so secure in all my life as I did right then. It seems incongruous after such a short space of time having the feelings that I did for Bill but I can tell you friends, right at that moment there were not two other people in the whole world that I would rather have been with or felt more secure with than these two creatures of the night.

As he went on stroking my hair, Bill told us what had happened after he had attacked. In the middle of the square is a manhole covering a shaft leads down to what forms part of the ancient drainage systems under the city. Perhaps once this maze of catacomb like tunnels had been dug for other purposes, much like the Roman viaducts under the great city of Rome was used for many other reasons I pondered, but in the times that I am talking about they were dried up and empty apart from the refuse and other unsavoury discards of a city of that size. 

So it was that he had used this to his advantage and moving at vampire speed he had lifted the metal cover and disposed of the bodies. Once underground he had made a quick search and had fed then, with his keen sight and sense of direction, he had made his way through the tunnels and come out several blocks behind me through another grating. So, he had not only disposed of the unwanted strangers, but he had covered his tracks as well. 

‘That explains it then,’ I said. They both looked at me. ‘That explains what?’ Bill asked. ‘Well, I heard a noise while you were gone, like a metallic noise so that must have been when you dragged the cover back across the hole after entering the shaft. I could not understand what it was as the time and it wasn’t long after that I looked into to the square but there was nothing there, it was empty and then you appeared behind me. I just could not work out how you could have disappeared like that and Bill, you know what that means?’ He looked at me quizzically, ‘It means that if I couldn’t work it out then no one else could, so we are safe and above any suspicion that may arise.’ 

‘We may be above their suspicion for the moment but I am not so sure that we are totally safe,’ he said frowning. ‘One thing I do know, we have not got a moment left to lose in getting the scroll safely out of France and getting on with our search. Fabienne, just how hard is it to get a message to your resistance friends?’ I thought for a moment. ‘It is not easy but it is not as hard as you think. I have many friends from my convent days, some of who joined the church, it was their calling and although they have dedicated themselves to serving God, they are staunchly patriotic and so I can get messages through to them and to my friends in Paris.’ 

Heinrich rose and beckoned us into his office, where he sat writing at his desk for a considerable amount of time. Much to my surprise, Bill too sat writing what looked to be detailed instructions which, when he had finished, he sealed in an envelope and handed it to the older vampire to be included with his letters and papers. I had noticed that Heinrich went to his safe and took out what I thought looked like identity papers. I asked no questions, I did not wish to know and thought the better of it. As I have often thought before, Heinrich is a very resourceful person and there is not much now that I am surprised by.

‘Fabienne, if you will give me the name of your contacts I will arrange to get these safely through to them. I am sure that George can be of help too with this.’ I looked surprised at this, George the Purple Veil’s owner being mentioned, but I noticed that Bill was not. ‘He is a friend of ours?’ Bill said more of a statement than a question. Heinrich nodded. ‘George has many friends and contacts. I have known him ever since I came here and although he does not know of our ….how shall I put it, our ‘race,’ he does know that I am on the same side as he is. I think that he has felt the long arm of this war personally. He has not said so but one can tell, so I have no doubts that he will not reveal our request in anyway but will do what he can to help us. From time to time we have done each other favours.’ 

‘It may take a little time but I think that in the mean time, given the events of the last twenty four hours, we can afford a day or two of respite before anything further happens. What do you think Bill?’ Heinrich asked with interest. ‘I think that you are right. I do not think that there will be any immediate reaction to our “friends” disappearance so given that, if you can give me an idea of how long you think that it may take to get the message through before we can expect results then I think that we can start planning our next course of action.’ 

I wrote the name and address of who it was that Heinrich needed to contact and a brief note of introduction. I also added some instructions of my own. I had suddenly had an idea that I wanted explored but I didn’t want the two vampires to know in case I got their hopes up only to be dashed. I said a silent pray as I handed my envelope to Heinrich, hoping that my hunch would be fruitful. It was a shot in the dark but I was excited by it. Why none of us had thought of it before I don’t know but time will tell if it is correct or not and for both Bill and Heinrich’s sakes I hoped with all my heart that it would be. 

Heinrich shrugged. ‘I too still have contacts in Paris and they are both human and vampire. I will send out messages to my friends and I know they will do what they can. I would think that by this time next week we should be expecting things to have moved considerably.’ Bill nodded. ‘Well in that case I think the first thing that we should do is get Fabienne’s apartment cleaned up.’ 

He turned to me ‘Do you think that you could face going there now so we can check up on everything? Then, if you are agreeable,’ and here he said this to me but I had the feeling he was saying this for Heinrich’s benefit, ‘you could get what ever you need for tonight. I don’t want you staying there on your own, not yet, not until we are sure that you will be safe. I have two spare guest rooms so you will be perfectly safe at my home,’ he finished, looking at Heinrich as though for approval.

My heart literally gave a flutter at the thought of staying at Bill’s for the night again. In response Bill discreetly gave me the tiniest of squeezes. He had felt my excitement and in turn I had felt again that pulling of happiness coming from him. I did not know how the blood bond thing worked but it was a marvellous thing to me. To be able to literally feel another’s reactions from within you, it was such a personal intimate thing and I loved it.

I gave a small nod and smiled shyly at Bill. ‘Good that is settled then. I would be worried to think of Fabienne on her own without any protection,’ he said smiling at Heinrich. ‘Now it is getting late and I think that you need some rest my dear,’ Heinrich said standing and walking over to take my hand and squeeze it gently as I stood, then totally uncharacteristically, he leaned in and kissed my cheek whispering in my ear as he did so, ‘I am happy for you. He is a good creature.’ So, he had known all along and he was giving me his blessing. I kissed his cheek as tears sprang to my eyes. He really was like a father to me now that mine had gone.

Saying good night, Bill and I made our way cautiously to my apartment. It was just as we had left it the night before and I knew that it would take me some time to get the mess cleaned up but right now I did not care too much. I hastily packed a few things that I thought I would need, throwing them into my much travelled and battered small overnight bag. Bill suggested that I bring enough for tonight then perhaps while he was gone to ground tomorrow I could put a few things in order here. He was feeling confident now that there would not be any further attacks for a while. 

It was already very late when we had left Heinrichs so by the time we had retrieved my things and gone back to Bill’s, dawn was not too far away. Bill looked apologetically at me as we undressed and got into bed. ‘Fabienne,’ he whispered into my mouth as he kissed me and nuzzled me, ‘dawn is coming, we have no time now but I promise that I will make it up to you.’ I was content just lying in his arms, holding each other. That was enough for me. I wanted no more, just what was right for us both at the time.

I awoke some time just after noon feeling refreshed for all my late night and the excitement of the last twenty four hours. By the light of one of the small lamps Bill had left burning for me, I got dressed and getting my small torch, I made my way up the darkened stairs to the ground floor. I had agreed with Bill before falling asleep that I would go home sometime during the day and make a start on cleaning up the mess I had to face there. I also thought it would be a good opportunity to get in some food and supplies to bring to Bill’s. 

On my way back to my apartment a thought suddenly struck me and so I took somewhat of a detour and went instead to the local library. You are surprised that there was a library but as I have said before, this was a colonial city with a large population of Euro and Anglo’s who wished nothing more than to replicate that small piece of home they missed, so what better than to have the mandatory library in the town. Largely supplied by the charity and donations of the more affluent members of our society, I was surprised to find quite a large selection of numerous topics and interests.

It took me some time to find what I was looking for and to be totally honest, I was not expecting to find anything at all but I was pleasantly surprised. After one hour of reading and taking notes, I left with a smug smile on my face. Hah, I thought, I have something to share with Bill and Heinrich that I think will give then a little surprise and interest them too and I looked forward to sharing my new found knowledge with them.

I was also surprised by the amount of clearing up I managed in my apartment. I had accomplished much in such a short space of time. The rooms had looked a lot worse than they were, it was the shock I supposed of seeing them in such disarray that first night that had made things seem exaggerated but by the time my stomach was growling for my dinner, I had managed to just about clean away all the debris, leaving me enough time to run a quick bath while I ate a simple meal of honeyed dates, some fresh pomegranates, sweet juicy figs and once again I chose bread and goats cheese to ease and satisfy my appetite. 

There was something sustaining about this simple fair, perhaps like Bill I was becoming susceptible to the atmosphere of this exotic place. It was hard not to be carried away as I passed the street vendors baking their traditional wood smoked breads, the aromas lingering in the mind, mixing with the spices and pungent perfumes of the veiled ladies as they passed with their almond eyes averted. 

I had even treated myself to the local version of my favourite confectionary and opening a simple bag, I delighted in a piece of rose flavoured Turkish delight studded with roasted almond shards for desert. Unable to resist, I took the bag with me to sample more of this sweet concoction as I soaked for a few minutes in my bath, liberally sprinkled with a blend of fragrant oils that the seller had guaranteed, on his mother’s grave, to be the exact blend used by Cleopatra.

This, I thought, was heady stuff for me as I remembered reading once that Shakespeare was said to have written of Cleopatra’s royal barge, when she went to meet Mark Anthony, as having purple sails so perfumed that the winds were lovesick. At the time I had not been impressed with this romantic notion but now, lying here in my fragrant oils knowing that I was to meet Bill soon, I could appreciate the sentiments.

Drying myself off, I noticed how much softer my skin felt and how the oils seemed to have soaked into my body, wrapping me in a layer of the top and middle notes of the scent. I made a mental note to go back to the small shop with its rows and rows filled with delicately fragile bottles and make further purchases. 

I had never been one to take particular care of myself as other women did. I had not had the inclination to indulge myself in beauty parlours or facial treatments, permanent waves or manicures, the only allowance to the vagaries of the feminine side to me were my penchant for haute couture and that was more for the benefit of the business rather than being a slave to fashion. It made a better impression on clients to see someone stylishly dressed in simple well cut clothing. 

But now, since well…since the night I had spent with Bill, my feminine self had been awoken and I craved to be as soft and alluring as possible. Silly really I told myself, but I couldn’t help smiling at the thought of it while massaging all over me an emollient the same seller had said was just as effective as the bath oil. It certainly appeared to be so, as my skin had never had this glow to it before nor had I ever smelt so good. 

Dressing in casual slacks and a blouse I stood looking at myself in the mirror of my dressing table. I was different. This was not the same person who had stood there two nights before dressing hurriedly to make her way to Heinrich’s. This person looking back at me now was no longer the lonely bored girl with out any hopes or aspirations; sad amber eyes staring out at a world with no particular interest, watching time go by without a thought.

The woman I saw now had a glow, had a purpose and had hope. And apart from that, I smiled to myself knowingly, this woman had a date to meet the most alluring man she had ever met and hearing a knock on the front door, I smiled feeling through our bond that he had come, he was here and I went eagerly and with joy in my heart to let him in.


	11. Chapter 11

Arriving at the door, Bill was not dressed in his usual chic tailoring but in beige coloured, snugly fitted tight jodhpurs, showing off his sleek muscular body to perfection. Topped with a cream coloured silk shirt draping softly over his well formed shoulders, sleeves rolled up to show off his beautiful smooth arms, his favourite brown weather beaten fedora hat sitting at a jaunty angle and his travel stained leather jacket slung over one shoulder finished off the ensemble. He looked stunning as he casually leaned against my doorway. His lips curved in the tiniest of knowing smiles as he felt, rather than saw, the effect he had on me through the bond, my cheeks burning with embarrassment as his eyes followed me, reading my face and my thoughts. He leant in and very softly kissed me, barely skimming my lips before pulling back to study the effect.

‘You are incorrigible,’ I laughed despite myself, my breath short and my legs weak again. He smirked at me. ‘I hope that is not all I will be for you tonight.’ I thought I would faint. He knew what to say and do to get the exact reaction he wanted. George had given Bill the night off at his request. He knew that Bill was such a draw card that he did not want to lose him so for one night the patrons at the club could go without Bill, listening instead to The Silver Scarabs, a local quartet he had previously engaged as the floor show, so Bill informed me. 

Running my eyes over him again I realised he was not dressed for a quiet night with just the two of us at home. ‘Must we go out?’ I asked a little desperately. Bill laughed. ‘I have something that I am sure that you will enjoy, I promise that you will find it is worth the effort,’ he replied mysteriously, ‘so come on, get ready and we will make a start, we have a long way to go,’ he responded. ‘Oh and what you have on is just fine for where we are going,’ he smiled mischievously.

Puzzled by that last remark, I knew that I was not going to get anywhere trying to get any answers out of him, he was after all a Vampire and they were very good at being closed when they chose to. As I had no need to change, I was ready to leave but Bill advised me to bring a jumper and a jacket, which I found rather odd seeing where we were. Taking my hand he led me through the passages and streets to the edge of town where a small well kept stable housed the beautiful horses the elite foreign visitors to the city came to hire their mounts from.

My eyebrows went up in surprise. I had not been expecting this. ‘I thought we could take a moonlit ride,’ Bill smiled as he took the reins of a beautiful small pale grey Arabian mare from the grooms man and handed them to me before giving me a boost up. He quickly mounted his large black stallion and slowly led the way out of stables, then turning he took a narrow track through the remaining darkened outskirts of town. 

It was obvious to me that Bill knew his way completely and had travelled this path many times before. The moonlight cast enough light for him to see his way and with his Vampire eye sight, even on a dark night he would not have had any troubles staying on the track. The air was cool and refreshing after being in doors and had a fresh sharp tang to it after the heady aromas of the Souq that could at times become cloying when the heat became too unbearable to breathe.

We rode on for some time under the midnight blue velvet sky, dotted with a brilliant scattering of stars that looked close enough to reach up and touch. The ancient Egyptians believed the Milky Way to be like the river Nile floating through the sky, seeing it tonight so clear and close I can understand why they found it so magical. It was like a shimmering pathway through the inky darkness, a pathway for the Gods I thought poetically and it filled me with awe and wonder. 

Bill rode beside me, keeping his stallion in check and slowing its pace down, not wanting to tire my little mare. I did not know where we were going and I did not care so carried away as I was with the adventure of it all. A shooting star passed over head with a trail of brilliance fanned out behind it like an out of control sky rocket on New Years Eve, leaving me thrilled by the sight of it. ‘Make a wish,’ Bill said eagerly, as he watched my face gazing at the sky in rapture. ‘I don’t need to, I have everything that I could ever wish for right here, right now in this very moment. There is no greater happiness that I could feel than this.’ I heard my voice crackling, full of the emotion of it all. 

He leaned over dangerously and kissed me and despite my fear for his safety, I was thrilled. It was the most romantic thing to have ever happened to me in my life and one that I would never forget. It was stupid of me to be fearful for Bill’s safety, he was after all Vampire and even if he had fallen, he would not have suffered as a human would but Bill was so much in touch with his human side that at times I forgot he was not one of us. 

We had been riding for some time when I noticed a rocky out crop to the left of us. I had not seen it before as the moon was coming from that direction and it had been hidden in the stark gloom of the distance but now I could see it more clearly. I was not familiar with much of the landscape in this direction so it was a surprise to find the hills of stone rising out of the desert surrounds like some odd grotesque unknown shape ready to spring at an unwary traveller. 

Bill, with the confidence of familiarity, directed the horses over to what looked like a narrow ravine hidden amongst the shadows. We had slowed down to a walking pace to allow our mounts to pick their way through the narrow entrance. He moved his horse a little ahead of mine, leaning back to hold her bridle while he guided her. In the gloom I could not see quite why he was leading me to this wall of rocks when suddenly, we rounded an outcrop of rock that seemed to be jutting out of no where and squeezing through the cliffs, we came out in to the most amazing place I have ever seen.

We were in a hidden oasis. To my right a shimmering pool fed by some underground spring was surrounded on three sides by the other side of the high rocky cliffs of stone I had seen in the distance. To my left the rocky wall soared up to a great height and rounding the bend, we came to a sheltered over hang formed by a giant scoop out of the cliff next to the path. But all of this paled in to comparison to the wonder in front of me. The crystal clear water of the pool seemed to shimmer at the edge of eternity giving way to a view of the distant horizon then fall, cascading gently over boulders piled and randomly placed as though for the amusement of the traveller. Water spilled gently over the lip of each ledge, tumbling in ceaseless movement.

Climbing down from his stallion, Bill was at my side in Vampire speed to lift me down, taking me in his arms as he did so and kissing me tenderly. I had never seen a place such as this, I had no idea that something so wonderful could even exist and with Bill’s kisses becoming more passionate, I felt the influence of him and the surroundings pulling through me. There was something wild about this deserted spot, the tall cliffs, the shimmering pool, the remoteness, a raw savagery that set me on fire. It set Bill on fire too, I could feel his hardness through the skin tight pants he was wearing as he held me pressed close to him, his kisses more urgent as they went on. 

Total abandonment swept through me and without hesitation I began to stroke him with one hand while with the other, I attempted to undo the buttons of his shirt, feeling the rumbling in his chest as my hand slid beneath the silky fabric. His soft downy hair twined around my fingers as I ran my hand softly over his cool sensual skin, all adding to the excitement I could feel beginning to build in me. Bill stood perfectly still, as though he was turned to stone. I could feel him trying to stay in control through our blood bond, fighting with the urges surging through him. ‘Fabienne,’ he whispered as soft as the gentle breeze that barely touched our skin. I was running my hand over him now, shivering at the feel of him, his muscled chest beneath my fingers. ‘Fabienne,’ he said more urgently, and then with an enormous amount of will power, he broke free. 

‘I have to see to the horses, we can’t afford to get stranded out here,’ Bill whispered, brushing my lips before quickly securing the horses, unpacking the saddle bags and stowing them under the over hang of the rocky outcrop. It had taken him only a short space of time but it had given me enough time to think and suddenly I was hit with an urge that I felt compelled to act upon. I hurriedly undressed, pulling my top off over my head with out even undoing the buttons, climbing out of my slacks and quickly stepping out of my underwear before walking over to the upper most pool of water. The high rocky cliff walls left the pool like a small bowl, the heat from the rocks warming the water and taking away any chill, plus there was a faint scent to the sparkling water that lead me to believe it was a mineral spring pool fed from beneath the rocks by some underground thermal heat. 

I stepped in to the wonderfully refreshing sensations of the bubbling pool and found myself standing on a small ledge lower than the bank, the water caressing my calves and thighs like massaging fingers of relaxation. Bill stepped out into the moonlight from the dim recess of the overhang and he too had dispensed with his clothes and was standing in front of me at the edge of the pool in the blink of an eye. 

I looked up at him from my lower position and he gently took my face in his hand. At the touch of his skin I felt such an overwhelming need, one that I was not used to and had not felt or even thought of before, standing within inches of me, his body was so ready to taste. As the thought passed through my mind, my body responded like a child responds to candy they see, greedily wanting it immediately. He felt my thought almost before I did, his swollen manhood jerking with excitement and firmly but gently pulled me into him. 

I was unsure of myself, this was not something that I was familiar with but I wanted this. From the moment I had first seen him naked, more beautiful than any statue or painting, I had wanted to kiss him, to feel him, experience touching and stroking him. I did not know what would please him, my dark creature, but I did what came naturally to me. 

As he pressed my face to him I gently held him, the touch of my skin sending another ripple of excitement through him. Slowly I began kissing him, gentle soft kisses, my lips barely touching him. Bill moaned almost silently as with the tip of my tongue I caressed him gently. I felt him harden in my hand sending a thrill through me, racing down my body making me respond to him, my feelings surging through the bond to excite him even more. 

He began to thrust towards me, urging me to take him but I wanted this to last, I was virginal to this experience and did not want to surrender to it so easily. I began to tease him, running my tongue down him, playing with the tip of him, feeling the sensitivity held there-in before slowly I opened my mouth to take him leisurely, inch by inch. He was thrusting now, willing me to take him all, my mouth was doing wonderful things for him and he was needy for his climax. I could feel he was so close but I wanted this to go on and on, in my naiveté not realising that as he is Vampire, he could go on and on all night.

I pulled my mouth away, not all the way but just to a point where he was the most sensitive before running my tongue around him, then I plunged down taking all of him all in my wet mouth. He gasped, an involuntary jerk a warning signal he could not hold out much long. It was perhaps one of the most arousing things I experienced that night and I too did not know how much longer I could go with out him. I pulled back again and again, teasing repeatedly all the while Bill moaning continuously. I could feel him growing bigger and knew he could not go on, the thought making me ache for him so very much. 

With a swift movement he was suddenly in the water beside me lifting me, my arms wrapping around his shoulders, my legs around his waist. A sudden hard thrust and he was in me and thrusting harder and harder into me, filling me. Within moments we had both surrendered so great was the want and desire that we had for one another, we could not hold back any longer and I clung to him like some impaled thing panting, trying to get my breath and regain my senses. 

But this was not to be. I had awoken a need in Bill as he had in me and he had not fed on me, holding back as if to savour the pleasure. Letting me slide down his body he turned me around, his body quick to press against my back. Instinctively I leant a little forward, arching my back against his hard muscles so that we were spooning together, our bodies moving to each others needs. Bill must have decided that I needed a little getting back at as he began teasing me mercilessly. I could feel his hardness pressing into the small of my back and he knew through the bond just what that was doing to me but that did not stop him. 

Continuing to rub against me, he slid his hands around me to hold me to him as he cupped my breasts. His fingers searched for my nipples, letting out a groan when he felt them hardened by my excitement. He seemed to be fascinated as he flicked and gently pulled at them, his thrusts into my back increasing. Sliding his hands down me, reaching into my folds with his delicate fingers exploring until he had me squirming with desire for him. He held me firmly now with his other hand to my hip, pulling me back into him. I could feel every inch of him against me, rubbing in time to the delicate touch of his hand as he teased me.

‘Bill,’ I managed to rasp, ‘oh please Bill, I need you.’ As though he had been waiting for me to say it before succumbing to our needs, he stopped momentarily before reaching for his hardness and gliding himself into me. That moment felt like a life time of desperate want to be followed by a moment of pure ecstasy as he filled me. So powerful had Bill’s teasing been, within moments of his first thrust I could feeling myself reaching my peak and as my spasms rippled through him and around him, he bit down gently now, sucking just a mouthful of my life’s blood as he spilt his seed. 

We lay arm in arm on the rocky ledge of the pool, the warm water bubbling over us like a heated bottle of champagne, fizzing and swirling, drifting us off into a warm cocoon of pleasurable sensations. Lying together watching the stars moving across the sky in their procedural flight, my head resting on Bill’s shoulder while he softly stroked my arm, this was what it was like to be in love I thought. It was new to me and I marvelled at the warmth of it. 

‘What is it?’ Bill asked, feeling the sensation flowing through me, ‘what were you thinking of just now?’ he asked as he kissed my head. ‘It is nothing, it is me being foolish,’ I said to hide my confusion. Did a woman speak of this to someone she had really just met. If I told him how much he moved me would it be the end of things for us? I did not know, I had never been in this position so how did I know how to react? Was it better to be honest or to hide my feelings? That too was something that I was not used to doing. It was not my nature. 

‘Bill, did you love your wife?’ I asked, not to change the subject but to learn more about love. I had no one to ask, no mother or sister or close confidant to share those intimate confidences that we women have. I was unsure of the proper etiquette of love and lovers. What did I know of these things? I could perhaps ask Heinrich of the implications of such a position, after all he was older and must have seen mixed relationships before. But what am I saying, I am being too presumptuous in my assumptions that Bill would have feelings for me? I told myself not to be so ridiculous, and yet still I hoped with all my heart that he did. 

Bill’s face softened slightly at my question, holding my hand he as he spoke quietly. ‘She was the gentlest person that I had ever known. You have to remember times were different then. I had grown up with Caroline. I had known her since we were children and had watched in wonder seeing her grow from an awkward tom boy in to a lovely young woman. She had a fragility about her that was endemic to women of that era. 

‘Things were so very different then,’ Bill sighed. ‘It may not have been realistic but women lived to flatter and cater to their men folk’s needs while men, we worshipped our women. To find a good woman for marriage was one thing but to find and fall in love and to be loved back, that was something precious. I felt like I was the luckiest man alive the day that I wed.’

‘Yes, I loved her. She was my first and only love as a human apart from my children,’ he whispered before looking me in the eyes and saying, ‘in some ways you remind me of her, you have the same stillness about you at times. You take everything in Fabienne and you have had a lot to take in, but I have not heard you ever complain about the hand that has been dealt to you. You still live your life and you have faced your fears and not given up.’

He went on to tell me of his human life with his wife and his children. Oh to have his children I thought. What greater gift could you have or give. I had not thought of this before, I had never wanted children, I had not had the maternal need or the inclination of those other women who wanted nothing more of life than to have children year after year but now, much to my astonishment, now it was different. Now I had feelings that had been awakened by him and like the Genie once let out of the bottle, they were hard to put away. I was falling in love with this creature, this man, this beautiful being and in my naiveté I wanted everything. 

‘I went back you know,’ he said in a far off voice as though reliving those moments all those years ago. ‘I went back after I was turned.’ I looked at him with such sadness. How hard would that have been? What kind of torment would that sort of suffering bring to anyone let alone Bill who was such a loving and caring husband and father. ‘Oh Bill, I wish that I could take this pain away for you,’ I hugged him as a single red tear streaked his face. ‘You have Fabienne, you do not know how much you have given me. I think that you too know something of the pain that loneliness brings and yet here we are. We are no longer lonely for we have found each other in this whole crazy world,’ he said kissing me tenderly and holding me in his arms. 

I sighed contentedly nestling into him, our bodies perfectly moulded into each other then suddenly I sprang up in a panic. ‘What is it, what is wrong?’ Bill said alarmed. ‘Bill, it is getting close to dawn and we are miles from home,’ I said frantic with fear for him. He gave a small dismissive laugh. ‘Come here,’ he soothed me as he reached out and gently pulled me back into his arms. ‘It is all right. I have another surprise for you, we are staying the day here,’ he chuckled at the surprised look on my face as he held me to him unconcerned by the time. 

‘Fabienne, do you trust me? I mean, do you really trust me?’ He asked me this half amused but I thought that at the same time there was a deeper seriousness to the question. Without the slightest hesitation I quickly answered. ‘Bill, I trust you with even more than my life, I trust you with my heart.’ 

He gazed at me for just one second before drawing me into to meet his lips, crushing me to them in a kiss that said more than any words that he could have spoken. He held his hand to my face, gently brushing my cheek as he held me to him, the kiss lasting a life time and is still with me now. 

He pulled back slightly to gaze into my eyes. He was hesitating; there was something that he was trying to say, his lips moving but no words forming. I looked at him without saying anything. I felt there was such seriousness to the moment that I should not break it as I waited for what was to come. I did not know why or how I knew but I felt that what ever Bill was about to say would have consequences and those consequences would be for both of us and they would change everything.


	12. Chapter 12

‘Come,’ Bill said as he stood and reaching out, he took my hand. As we climbed out of the pool and walked towards the overhanging rock face, I glanced towards the cascading water fall. It was late so the moon was setting far away across the desert but it was still up and now, whether it was a trick of the light or some desert winds blowing sand far away creating an optical illusion I did not know but it looked huge and had a pale yellow colour to it, glimmering brightly as it seemed to shimmer on the edge of the waterfall before disappearing below the lip. The scene was staggeringly beautiful and one that I would always remember.

I felt like I had discovered paradise and we were Adam and Eve, the only two souls on the face of the planet as we walked like children in our nakedness. I had never thought I could be so free in my mind and body, me who was formerly the most modest of persons but here I was with this creature, this man, and his nakedness was a delight that I revelled in, my own body no longer a thing of ultimate sin as the nuns had taught. I wanted to run and jump and chase the moon and tell the stars how happy I was, how completed I felt with this creature, with Bill. 

‘You are happy,’ he said as he stopped and held me. ‘I can feel the happiness in you,’ he was whispering tenderly, smiling a small shy smile. ‘Is it wrong; is it wrong to feel so happy when all around us others are in so much pain?’ I asked him with feeling. ‘No, Fabienne no it isn’t. We all need to feel happiness when it is there to take. Embrace it for it can be such a fragile delicate and fleeting thing. You make me feel…’ he stopped and raised my hand to his cool lips then softly caressed my cheek. I waited for him to finish what he was saying, my heart pounding while I held my breath. I could feel his insecurities, his hesitancy bubbling through him, wanting to say ….what I thought. ‘Come, I have something to show you,’ and with that he led me to the back of the overhang.

‘Bill what are you doing, the sun will be coming up soon?’ I fretted as he led me to the rock wall that ran the length of the huge overhang, trusting as he asked me to do but scared for his safety then just as I was about to say something further, he disappeared. One minute he was there and the next he was gone. I looked around but he was no where to be seen. I had heard that Vampires can move quickly, that some can fly while others can shape shift but although I had seen Bill move with a speed that was amazing, I did not think that he could do either of the other phenomenon but I wasn’t sure. 

So here I was, in the middle of a desert and the creature that I had fallen in love with so desperately had disappeared. I wondered for one fleeting moment if that is why he had asked if I trusted him. I did trust him I told myself, I did love him I realised, loved him with all my naïve and vulnerable heart. I stood there and did not know what to do when just as suddenly as he had vanished, he reappeared as if out of no where. I looked at him, my face a mask of confusion. ‘Where did you go? Where were you?’

Bill took my hand and led me not towards the outside of the overhang but further along the wall until he reached the corner of where the wall met at right angles and it was there that Bill then squeezed behind a sharp edge of rock and melted into the gloom taking me with him. I realised then that from the outside of the overhang this small narrow passage would not be seen as it was so cunningly camouflaged by the natural formation. As we entered the narrow entrance, Bill picked up a lantern that he had lit when he had disappeared from view and holding my hand, he led me further into the cave.

Moving slowly to allow my eyes to acclimatise, we again squeezed past a further out crop of rock, almost like having entered into a building with a vestibule then moving through into the main area. It was a perfect concealment for even if someone was to stumble across the first entrance, the second was as well hidden as the first and provided double concealment.

I gasped as I came through this second opening as before me was a pathway wandering downwards lit by what seemed to be a string of lanterns that I realised Bill had set alight for my benefit. It was magic, just like finding an Aladdin’s fairy cave. Still holding my hand, Bill led me down the meandering path as it curved and dipped, going steeply down hill until opening out, I stopped to gasp with the wonder of it all.

‘What is this place, how did you find it? I … I can’t believe this,’ I was stammering, staring around with wonder. Bill moved over to where he had lit a fire, the temperature in the cave was so much lower than the outside that I now understood why he had told me to bring a jumper and jacket. It was so very cold in here. 

The fire was placed in a central position surrounded by bedding on one side and other bits and pieces he must have bought out here from time to time to be of some kind of comfort to him. Other than a lack of food supply, he could exist here, gone to ground in this light tight place, only coming out at night and he would be able to survive without any problems, well other than the obvious lack of food but as far as being light tight, it was perfect. He stoked the fire into a blaze then taking my hand, sat me down on the bedding, pulling fur quilts around us to keep the cold at bay, not that he needed to but more out of comfort for my sake.

I opened my mouth to speak but he pre empted me. ‘I was out in the desert one night when I found the oasis. Fabienne you have seen the magic of the place and felt its charm, there is something so special about it that for the first time in my existence I was totally carried away and lost track of the time. When I felt the pull of dawn coming I thought that I had left it too late. I was here and I was trapped, it was too far even for me to get back safely and in desperation I moved to the back of the overhang to await the dawn and death.’

My heart felt the awful fear of his words and I imagined what it must have been like to face death in such a very horrible fashion or so I imagined it to be. ‘Then just as I was about to lie down to await the sun, I noticed a scorpion scuttling towards the rock and as I watched I saw it disappear. That is how I found this place and I have been drawn here ever since. I wanted to share this with you, this is where I feel safe, where no one can touch me. No one else knows of it, I have not shared this with anyone but you. I have never cared for anyone enough or thought that anyone cared enough about me to share this with until now, until you. Fabienne you have given me my life back, you have made me feel like a man again.’

He kissed me softly, with all the tenderness of a newly found lover, no passionate urgency, no lust filled crushing of mouths, this was as tender and gentle as two lovers with one soul sharing a life time of loving could be. He made love to me, softly and sweetly lingering in each others arms, tenderly whispering to each other of our love for one another. My heart was bursting with his words, his touch and the closeness that we felt for each other. I wanted nothing more out of life than to be in his arms, to feel his soul wrapt around mine, two lovers, one giant love. I was complete at last.

The pull of the sun finally took Bill to that place that I could not share with him and I too fell asleep, comforted that we were together in this haven. When I awoke it took a few moments to get my bearings. The fire had died down to a soft glow lighting the cavern with a dull red light that did little to dispense the gloom in the shadows. If I had been there with anyone else I would have felt afraid but even with Bill asleep as I liked to put it, I felt safe and secure. 

I looked down at his peacefully resting face, the faint lines that crept across his forehead relaxed in his slumber, the tightness that at times pursed his mouth, gone. He looked like a stone carving of a knight or a lord laying at rest, pale, cold and more, and so beautiful it would break your heart. I traced the planes of his cheeks with my warm hands, his face so death like cold to touch, his lips a perfect symmetry, his eye brows like kisses of angels wings. No poetry could ever do justice to the way that I saw him. He is the only creature, the only man on this planet that I love and am in love with. He is MINE.

I shivered a little at the thought of how very much I loved him and how very alone I had been before he came into my life. 

Fumbling in the dim light I found the bag that Bill had carefully folded my clothes into and I hurriedly dressed. I stoked the fire from the pile of wood that Bill had stockpiled over to one side of the cave and poked and cajoled it until it was blazing fiercely and throwing out a wonderful warm heat. 

It was while I had been over at the wood pile that I had noticed something that had set my mind racing. On the walls of the cave were markings, hieroglyphs of some kind of primitive form if you like and they were amazing. I stood with my mouth agape, this was truly a wonderful discovery. Even I with my limited layman’s knowledge I knew that this was something of historical importance and here I was gazing on something that apart from Bill, no one else had seen for thousands of years. 

I shook my head realising that all this time Bill had held this information to him self and I wondered about this, there must be a reason that he had found it so important not to tell the world of this but why? Then I peered a little more closely and a light dawned within me… I knew or suspected why but I would have to wait of course until he was awake to talk to him to confirm my suspicions. 

In the mean time I had hours to fill in until that time so, going through the saddlebags, I found some food that Bill had so thoughtfully packed for me and I decided that I would make a picnic for myself out there in the sunshine, besides I wanted to wash and freshen up and the thought of the glistening pool and the waterfall was too much for me and I wanted to see them in the daylight. 

Taking my food and a lantern Bill had given me before falling asleep, I made my way out of the chamber and stood blinking in the shadows of the overhang until my eyes had acclimatised to the daylight. The first thing to hit me once my eyes had adjusted were the colours, it was all so vivid, the rocks, the blue of the sky, the water and the sparse greenery. Then of course came the immediate heat. It was stifling and took my breath away after the deep cold of the cave. I was instantly bathed in sweat but despite this I made sure that our two horses were tethered securely in the shade of the outcrop next to the path and that they had food and cool water to sustain them. They greeted me like two old friends and I stood talking to them and soothing them, their soft velvet noses nuzzling into me just as though they were as glad to see me as I was to see them still there. 

Before I sat down to eat I could not resist the lure of the pools and without any hesitation I stripped off and stepped into the water, abandoning myself to the rich minerals. I swam like a fish, something that anyone who knew me well would simply be amazed at but there was something about this place, something that held a special quality to it and something about the effect of Bill’s blood too I suspected.

I am not in the least taken to flights of fancy but this, this oasis of delights was magical and had magical qualities to it. I felt them and I was in its spell. Or was I simply so under the spell of my love for Bill that all things were of a special beauty and had I come here at any other time, would I simply have been grateful for a cool place to rest? Perhaps it was both, I did not know or care, my mind was too taken with sensory overload to be able to tell.

I sat on the edge of the rocky ledge to eat my food, nothing had ever tasted so delicious, the sky had never looked so blue, and the breeze had never felt so refreshing, everything had never felt so real. I wanted to stay here forever, living the moments of my life one drop at a time. 

I was beginning to feel sleepy sitting there in the sun, my stomach full and feeling clean and renewed so, once again, making sure our two horses had everything that they needed, I made my way back to join Bill in the cave. 

Perhaps it was because I was so very sleepy or perhaps it was because I was thinking only of lying down with Bill but for whatever reasons, I walked back past the first rocky entrance and turning I stepped past another corner and started making my way back down the cave only to realise that the lanterns along the path way had gone out. Then thinking that could not be so as I had made sure on my way out that they were turned down to economise of fuel, to my horror I knew I must have taken another passage at the very beginning near the entrance. 

Keeping as calm as I could, I turned and made what I thought was my way back. I came through the narrow way to what I expected to be the entrance of the passage down to Bill only to find I was in a small space and the entrance was no where to be found. A small ripple of fear ran through me. I tried to compose myself, this is silly I was telling myself all I had to do was turn around and go back out and walk along the rocky wall that lead to our cave turning and I would find the right opening, I just needed to keep calm and think logically and I would be fine. I walked back out thankful that I had a lantern with me and I edged my way along the rock until I found an opening that looked to be in the right place. 

Stepping through into the space beyond I walked a few paces looking for the cave entrance. It seemed to be a lot further than I had first pictured it but I had not been taking any notice when I had come in from the oasis and so I was not sure how far it had been but when I found the entrance down into the cave and walked on a little further, I realised that this was not right either as instead of descending down this seemed to be leading in an upward direction. I had taken the wrong opening again. 

Fear was starting to grip me now. I was beginning to become disorientated in the panic that was creeping in to me. My imagination began to take over and I started to think what if I could not find the right opening and what would happen when my lantern ran out of fuel. Holding up the lantern I estimated that if I was lucky I would have about another hour of light. Only one hour and it had been about two in the afternoon when I had come back into the cave so that meant that there were hours and hours before Bill would wake up and find me gone. Bill! Would Bill be able to find me, what would he think when he woke and I was not there and was no where to be found.

I tried very hard not to let myself loose my head as I made my way back out of this cave, I did not want to waken Bill through the blood bond and panic him so I concentrated on what I thought was the way that I had taken to get here. As I back tracked my way out I was thinking of what Bill had said about first finding this place, he had been watching a scorpion scuttling into the rocks at the entrance and that added more fears to my growing list of worries. I was fine while I had the lantern but if and when that went out, what would happen if I had not found my way out by then.

Fear really shot through me at that the thought. I began to shake and realised that after coming in from the heat of the outside, the cold of the caves was starting to chill me. A shiver ran through me as I passed through yet another opening but did not recognise anything. Tears started to prick my eyes as I was giving in to my biggest fears, I was hopelessly lost with no idea what direction to go in and no idea of where I was. 

I had turned my lantern down in an effort to save on fuel but as I had no real accurate idea of what time it was when I had first come in and was only guessing that I had been in here for about an hour, by the look of the remaining fuel that was left after shaking it, I knew that it would not last that much longer now and definitely not last until Bill awoke. I was not sure if, once awake would even Bill be able to find me. I knew that Vampires have extraordinary hearing abilities and seem to have other senses that are more attuned than humans but I was not sure that with all of those abilities, whether Bill could find me amongst the labyrinth of caves. 

I was so tired now, panic had made me feel worse than ever. I felt that I had been wondering aimlessly for hours even though I knew that it couldn’t have been that very long but it seemed like it. I stumbled and fell hard and I knew that I had grazed my knees badly, blood oozing out from where the skin had torn from my knees and my hands where I had reached out trying to break my fall. My shoulder hurt too and I felt that I had jarred it so painfully that I wondered if I had put it out but that was the least of my worries, with the fall I had dropped my lantern, it had shattered the glass and spilt the fuel.

I was alone in the caves with no idea where I was or where Bill was and I was in total darkness.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The story now picks up where it previously left off and remained unpublished for over a year and a half. 
> 
> I would like to thank those of you who have continued to have faith in this fic and have asked me from time to time to continue on, urging me to publish the whole tale. 
> 
> I sincerely hope that you will feel that your faith in the story, and in me, is justified.

Lying on the floor of the cave in total darkness, in pain from my shoulder and the cuts to my hands and knees, I could not help but cry. For the first time in my life I had found love, true love and now just as there was meaning in my life it was to be taken away from me. How ironical, how cruel I thought in my misery. Tears coursed down my cheeks, pouring from me in my pitiful state. I totally abandoned myself to my own self indulgent pity and sobbed myself into a fitful sleep. 

Darkness surrounded me like a pit of emptiness when I suddenly awoke to a pulling through me. I did not understand what it was that I was feeling but it was like a panic and then a frantic blind searching feeling tearing through me. I have never experienced anything like it and don’t want to again. It was frightening. 

I don’t know why, what made me do it but I began to call for Bill, frantically calling to him in the hopes that he could hear me. I had no idea what time it was, how long I had been here in this black hole or whether Bill was awake or not but I called and called until I was almost horse, my voice trailing off into a pitiful croak then a barely audible whisper. I had been sitting up but as my voice gave out and with it any hope that I had, I slunk down and curled up in a ball in an effort to stave off the cold that had now seeped through to my bones. 

So this is how I would end I thought as I gave into the darkness in my mind now. I was never meant to live in happiness for very long I determined in my abject sorrow for myself. ‘I love you Bill,’ I said whispering into the darkness, ‘I will always love you, you are the love of my life.’ Then I closed my eyes and drifted into a dream of utter despair. 

‘My love, my dearest sweet love,’ a gentle voice was whispering into my ear as strong arms lifted me carefully and held me cradled to a firm muscular chest, soothing me like my father had done when I was a child waking in the darkness from a bad dream. ‘Père? Est-ce que vous mon père? Suis-je mort? Father ? Is that you Father ? Am I dead ?’ I asked in my confusion. Soft lips brushed my hair, my eyes and my cheeks. ‘Fabienne, my Fabienne,’ Bill was saying ‘I thought that I had lost you my love.’ 

I opened my eyes and gazed up into his dazzling blue ones staring back at me, smudged with bloody tears that I could now see from the light shed by his lantern. I tried to fling my arms around his neck but could only manage to lift my left arm, my right shoulder was so damaged by my fall that it would not work for me. Bill’s face clouded, ‘You are hurt. Let me see.’ Very gently he ran his fingers over my body expertly assessing my injuries then with a sudden movement, and before I could stop him, his fangs dropped and he bit into his wrist. ‘Drink’ he said through bloodied lips as he held out his dripping arm. Seeing my hesitation he urged me ; ‘Drink from me, it will heal you.’ 

Taking his wrist in my hands, I tentatively placed my lips on his skin and began to suckle like a child. Bill gave a rumble at the first pull of my mouth and closed his eyes. His blood was thick and sweet, like a nectar to my shattered senses. Once started, I found that I did not want to stop and with each pull, Bill’s moans increased. His fangs were totally extended now and his eyes glazed over. I could feel life spreading through me, coursing through my veins and speading a warmth and darkness right through to my finger tips. I was tingling all over, my shoulder no longer hurt and my hands and legs totally healed. The darkness spreading through me was not the darkness of despair, it was a darkness of lust, want and hunger for things that I had only just recently discovered. 

I felt wonderful, I felt alive and I felt Bill’s need for me mixing with my own needs. I wanted him as I had never wanted him before. A blind madness took me, I wanted him and I did not want to stop drinking from him. ‘Easy,’ his voice was ragged as he tried to pry me off his wrist but I was too engrossed. ‘Fabienne,’ he said more urgently, but still I would not listen. Bill then did the only thing that he could to stop me and in one quick move, he had me on my back and was straddling me. I was panting now, lust ripping through my body as the darkness of the moment combined with the terrible scare that I had been through, all stirred me.

It has been said before that those who go through a terrible trauma often find solace in survival sex, that combined with the amount of Bill’s blood that I had drunk sent me into a place that I had never felt. He was mine and I had to have him, so as he straddled me into submission I began to tear at the belt of his trousers, ripping my nails in my haste to undo the buckle and take them off him. I think that he totally understood and I would like to think that he did not judge me too harshly for my behaviour, though at the time I don’t think that either of us really cared, we were too overcome in taking each other in the most fundamental and brutal way. 

He was naked and on top of me before I could catch my breath and with one hard thrust he was in me and moving swiftly, plunging into me again and again until we both reached our climax. I flew from the dark shadows of the my mind that had taken me to an erotic unfathomable lust filled void into a place of bright swirling lights and stars that shone in glittering showers of spinning golden cloudbursts, the shadowy thirst filled desires retreating to the back of my mind fully sated and hidden once again by the all encompassing love that poured through us both. 

‘Bill, I was so scared.’ I managed to speak once my breathing had calmed and my heart had stopped beating erratically, his arms around me strong and safe. ‘Tell me’ he whispered into my hair as he kissed me again just to make sure that I was real and he had not imagined finding me amongst the myriad of passages and caves. I went on to tell him what had happened, feeling so totally foolish for my stupidity. ‘How did you find me, I thought I was lost to you forever.’ I began to shed tears at the thought of it.

‘It was you, I could feel you and I heard you. That is how I found you. When I woke and you were not there I thought that you must have gone to the pool or were checking the horses but as I saw that the fire had nearly died out I began to feel uneasy then, when I went out side … it is night time now by the way, well when I got outside and could not find you there I was terrified for you. I could see that you had fed and watered the horses at some point so I knew that you must have gone out at some stage and judging by their water and feed bags I thought that it must have been hours ago and then it dawned on me. If you had come back in and were not with me then could you have taken a wrong turning and I began to explore the entrance and found yet another concealed way.’

‘It took me a while to find you but I heard you, I heard you say… I heard you whispering your goodbye to me, my love,’ his voice broke with tears spilling down his cheeks as he recounted this to me, ‘and I knew then that you were in a pitiful state. I had to find you fast. Then just as I was giving up I came across you lying here.’ He stopped and held me even tighter to him, caressing my face with one hand and patting my hand with his other just as if he truly wanted to make sure that I was still here with him and not some phantom of his imagination.

He stood then and lifting me light as a feather, he carried me safely through the passages with his vampire sense of direction to guide him. Lying me down under the fur covers he quickly stoked the fire into a blaze then climbed under the covers too and began to gently rub my feet and hands, massaging away any of the cold that still lingered from my exposure on the floor of the cave. 

‘I had planned to go back tonight but I think that you should rest a little and perhaps we can bathe again in the pool, the minerals of the hot springs will do you good.’ I felt fine and told him so, his blood was making me feel alive and had some rather alarming effects on me. I could almost feel my hair and skin growing and I noticed that my eye sight was a lot sharper and my hearing more acute. 

‘Bill I am fine honestly. I actually feel pretty good now.’ He was looking hard at me, studying my face. ‘Really, I feel more than fine,’ I said shyly smiling at him. ‘Is that,’ I hesitated before going on, ‘is that the effect of your blood?’ I smiled, ‘or is that the effect of just being near you that makes me feel like this?’ I asked him more out of curiosity than anything because in my heart I already felt that I knew the answer. 

‘Do you feel that you are up for a swim?’ he smiled and taking my hand he led me up to the pool where we stayed for hours drinking in the night, the stars, the moonlight and each other. After the ordeal in the caves I felt that I was reborn, that Bill had given me more than just his blood, he had given me a new chance at life and I wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of my time with him for however long that would be. 

When once again the dawn finally took him to that other place that I could not follow, he made me promise to leave a lantern at the start of our passage so that if I should venture out to care for the horses I would not repeat my mistake and get lost again. ‘I could not bear it if something happened to you my love,’ he had said as sleep took him. 

I too fell asleep and just as yesterday, I awakened to find the fire burnt low. In a repeat of my actions of the previous day I stoked the fire then ventured out into the sunshine to be greeted again by our horses before taking time to swim in the healing bubbles of the pool. I had carefully left a lantern just as Bill had suggested, making sure that there was plenty of fuel in it and it would not go out before I got back.

Unlike yesterday I did not feel hungry, Bill’s blood seeming to sustain me but just for the sake if it I had bought some biscuits with me that I had found packed in the saddle bags and sat like a child dangling my legs over the edge of the outcrop while I happily munched away until the heat became too much to bear for me and I safely made my way back down into the cave, the coolness a relief from the prickling heat of the rocks and desert.

I knew that within a short space of time I would be cold so once again I stoked the fire and pondered the meaning of the art on the walls. Bill was still sleeping of course and seeing him lying so peaceful I yawned, the pull of sleep calling me so I stripped off and got under the covers, draping my arm over Bill. I was asleep in moments dreaming of swimmers in cool sparkling pools, sleek and agile in their movements, living their lives in a world that was different, young and untouched by the eons of time and worshipping, but what was it that they were worshipping I wondered. 

Cool lips trailing tenderly down my neck woke me, stirring me from my strange slumbers. Opening my eyes the first thing I saw were two pools of sapphire blue smiling down at me. ‘Good evening my Fabienne,’ Bill said smiling down at me before leaning down and brushing my lips with his and he nuzzled me softly. I stretched out my body, my arms wrapping around Bill’s neck, pulling him to me to meet me. I loved running my hands through his thick hair, twinning it around my fingers, feeling the silky texture fade into a soft peach fuzz at the nape of his neck where the razor sharp hair cut finished in a small v shape that I found most erotic for some reason. Then running my hands down his back, I would delight in the contours of his sculptured muscles so smooth in my hands.

‘You know if you keep that up I am going to have to have you don’t you?’ he said into my neck as he began kissing a trail down my body. I smiled and he felt my pleasure, stopping to look at me. ‘Oh so I see your plan now,’ he smirked, ‘you are a minx aren’t you?’ I could not help myself now and ran my hands further down his back to his hips, delicately kneading the muscles of his buttocks, the rumble from his chest the only warning that I had of what was to come. Quick as lightening he moved his hand down me, cupping me before working his magic with his sensuous fingers. It was my turn to let out a groan now. It did not take him long to have me wanting more, so much more. ‘If you do not stop Bill, you know that I am going to have to have you don’t you?’ I said huskily, the words no sooner out of my mouth than he was resting on his elbows looking down at me, his fangs fully extended and gently, he was filling me with his love. 

Lying in each others arms embracing in the after glow of our love making, I asked him of the strange markings on the cave walls. With all that had happened on the previous day I had not had time to bring it up. We must have talked for an hour of all the possibilities this discovery meant and I asked why he had chosen not to share this with the world. When he explained his reasons I nodded. ‘Yes I can understand now the hesitation that you would feel. Do you see a connection with our search, is it what I think? I have not told you yet of what I found in our little local library have I, I had intended to tell you and Heinrich when we were all together but have not had the chance?’ 

I then went on to tell him how I had visited our little local library and found an old obscure tome that had a passage referring to a belief that I found to be of interest, a local law handed down word of mouth by the desert peoples. Bill was nodding his head, his eyes shining as I went on to tell him of what I thought that it all meant and how it may be connected to our search. ‘You know, that is how I am seeing things too and how I have thought since I found this place. I cannot tell you of my excitement when I found the drawings here. They set me thinking but darling, we cannot tell anyone of this, not yet, not until we are sure of it and even then, it may not be the right time yet. You have to promise me.’

I would have promised him anything to hear him calling me darling, the term of endearment melting my heart. Taking his hand in mine I looked at him with his enthusiasm blazing. ‘Of course I won’t say anything. This is yours and Heinrich’s history and all of your community. I know how important it is to you both.’ Bill hesitated before speaking, ‘It is also dangerous, not only because there are others, humans and of my own kind too that would use it for their own purposes but because of what this could do to change history.’ He sighed. ‘Enough of this, I want us to enjoy the last of our time here. We have just enough time to go for another swim in the pools if we hurry and …’ he was running his hand up and down my arm now, lightly touching my skin knowing that the effect, combined with the look on his face would send thrills through me, ‘and time for other things too,’ he had smirked. 

We swam together again in the moonlight, the water shimmering and bubbling around us. I wanted desperately to bottle up these memories, these moments, to treasure for ever. I was sure that these were the most thrilling moments of my life and I would never experience anything like my time here with Bill ever again. I think that Bill too wanted to hold onto this as he was very thoughtful and had gone quiet. ‘Fabienne, my Fabienne,’ he whispered to me as he nuzzled my neck, his head lying on my shoulder as I held him to me. ‘In all my long memories, you know that I will never forget our time here,’ he whispered to me sadly. 

I realised later that he was thinking not of just this moment in time but all the moments in time that would come for him. I wondered what it would be like to know there was no dying, no old age to cut short the precious time we have. Would eternity stretching out across the eons be something to look forward to or if knowing that other than Vampires, all those that you know and come to love in time, humans that is, they would all die and fade away, would it be something to face with sadness and dread?

I could not bear to think of it. I could not go through the pain again of losing what I had found, my hurt for my father’s death was still too raw to contemplate yet more goodbyes and I wondered what it must be like for Bill who had known the loss of his family and loved ones and all the goodbyes he had said and was yet to say. Eternity, I thought, that is not perhaps all that it is said to be cracked up to be. 

We left the oasis in the cool of the night, as we turned our horses around the bend in the track I looked back one last time to see the moon floating on the edge of the lip of the water fall like some giant pearl and imbedding the scene in my mind, I turned away at last. Would I ever be blessed with this scene of ethereal beauty again I wondered as I gee-upped my horse to join Bill for our journey back?


	14. Chapter 14

We had been riding for some time through the moonlit desert, the cool night air like an elixir to our horses. Stars shone in the clear sky ahead of us, bright and clear, close enough to pluck from their ink blue velvety backdrop. The sound of the horse’s hooves making a soft dull thud, deadened by the sandy floor, it was the only noise for miles and somehow it gave me a comforting feeling in the vast expanse of nothingness that stretched away to the distant mountains. Far off I knew that on the edge of the horizon Marrakesh sat sleeping in the night but it seemed to be further away and not getting any closer. In my curiosity to see how far we had come I turned in my saddle and looked behind me and that is when I saw it.

‘Bill, Bill what is that? The stars are being eaten by the sky,’ I was calling alarmed. Slowing his horse, he too turned to look back over his shoulder and was clearly disturbed by what he saw. ‘What, what is it? What is the matter?’ I asked watching his face as he studied the sky then turned to face me. ‘Here,’ he said as he reached into his saddle bag and drew out a long sheet of fabric like a scarf only much bigger. ‘Wrap this around your head and face,’ then nodding towards the oncoming deeper darkness that seemed to be eating everything in its approach, he simply said ‘Khamsin ~ sand storm.’ Turning back he reached across and took hold of my reins then urged the horses into a gallop with the hope of out running the onset. 

If I had been out there on my own I know that I would never have made it and had it not been for Bill’s keen eye sight I don’t think that we would have been safe but somehow, even when we were engulfed by the wind of choking sand and dust that completely blinded and robbed us of any landmarks to be guided by, still Bill somehow managed to get us through and we made it back safely to the outskirts of the city before the winds finally subsided.

It was gone as quickly as it had come upon us. We were fortunate as there were times the storms lasted for days and days and if caught out in it you had no choice but to shelter as best you could and try to survive its onslaught. Many did not make it and only the few tribesmen that roamed the desert, eking out their meagre way, could truly understand the ways of the desert winds and the signs to watch for. It was a hard life and not many could do it, I know that I couldn’t and was so very relieved to be safe now. 

It was nearly dawn when we got back to his home, the biggest fear I had was the chance that we would be caught in the open out there in the desert and Bill would have been taken along with the winds. I had not said this to him but I knew that he would be able to feel my fears for as we finally reached the safety of his home, with only one hour to spare, he took me in his arms and wiped the tears that rolled down my cheeks at the thought of what may have happened, tracks forming in the thick layer of residual dirt and grime that covered my face despite my make shift covering.

Sand and grit seemed to have poured into every crevasse of our clothes making it terribly uncomfortable to walk back to Bill’s. As soon as we were inside he took my hand and we ran upstairs to the bath room to shower, the warm fragrant soapy water heaven and then, grateful to have made it through our ordeal, we went to bed holding each other in the luxury of our comfortable bed. Sleep took me as soon as I lay my head on the pillow, the last thing I remember was Bill’s hand holding mine tightly as he too was taken by the dawn and sleep.

Despite Bill’s blood, the events had taken their toll on me and I slept through until Bill awakened me with his kisses. ‘Good evening my love,’ he smiled as he continued kissing me. I stretched out my stiffened muscles as I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him into me smiling. It was becoming a morning ritual and I loved it. ‘You know that we can’t keep doing this don’t you?’ I laughed, ‘if you keep this up we will never leave the bedroom.’ He raised his eyebrows, a quizzical look on his face. ‘Would that be so very bad?’ he was asking me with some surprise. ‘You know that as much as I want to stay here, Heinrich will be worried that he has not seen me for days, he knows that is out of character for me and with all that has happened he will be worried.’ 

Bill shook his head. ‘You are wrong. He knows that you are with me, that you are mine. He knows that I would lay down my life and meet the sun to protect you,’ he was saying seriously. This somewhat surprised me and thrilled me. I had no idea that our relationship would be considered so seriously as this. I thought of my commitment to Bill on a serious level but I did not realise that Heinrich would be aware of it and aware of Bill’s feelings and take it as seriously too. I smiled a contented smile. ‘Well in that case…’ I said suggestively to him, and that was all the encouragement he needed. 

When finally we made our way upstairs, once again I noticed a letter placed under the door way and while Bill made his way to the kitchen to check on his food supplies and make a coffee for me, I picked up the note and made my way out to the courtyard where we sat in the cool air of dusk. He sat reading it while I drank my coffee and I watched his face changing from a mask of concentration to one of huge joy. ‘What is it, why are you smiling like that?’ The expression on his face was one of absolute happiness. ‘It is from Heinrich’ he said handing me the note to read.

I skimmed through it but did not really understand fully what he had written as it was so very cryptic. Really all I could make out was that a guest that Bill was expecting would arrive with gifts for him by the end of the week. I raised my eyebrows and wondered. He also advised Bill that due to the fire at the Purple Veil he would not need to go in to work for the next two weeks. ‘Fire, what fire?’ I asked looking at Bill. ‘Read over the page’ he smiled. ‘I am arranging the fire to occur some time this afternoon in the kitchen so you will be free to do as you please for some time. All that I ask is that you take care of Fabienne.’ 

‘Do you see what this means?’ Bill laughed, he indicated the note that Heinrich must have written last night and sent around while we were asleep. Picking me up and spinning me around in his arms he then showered kisses all over me. It took me a moment to get my breath back before being able to answer. ‘What does it mean?’ I was smiling, his mood infectious. ‘We can do what ever we want to for the next few days and I know exactly what we are going to do.’ ‘Oh and what exactly is that?’ I asked not daring to think of what he would come up with next. ‘I am going to take you to meet some friends of mine and you are going to love them.’

It was not until two nights later that I found myself in the front seat of Bill’s car. The fact that Bill even had a car amazed me. Was there nothing that did not surprise me about him I thought as we drove along the dusty road, the moon still large and shining brightly in the dark velvet sky, the cool night air not yet turned to cold as it normally does rather quickly in the desert night? I did not have the slightest clue where we were going and Bill had not said, the only thing he did mention again was that I would love his friends and he seemed pleased with himself as we headed for the high peaks of the Atlas Mountains that lay in the distance. 

We had spent the last two nights pouring through the many books that were lying mouldering in the local library. I had arranged with the librarian during the day for a nocturnal visit using the excuse that Bill had to work and even though the Purple Veil was closed temporarily for repairs after the mysterious fire that had engulfed the kitchen. I had said that he had to rehearse so special allowances were made for our visit. Other than the passages that I had turned up already, nothing else was to be found so our journey there had been a bit of a waste of time. 

So here we were driving through the desert on our way to who knew where and I didn’t really care. I was with Bill and as he drove, he put his arm around my shoulder and pulled me in close to him. I could have sat in that car forever, not particularly caring if we ever reached wherever it was that we were going but soon the car left the featureless sandy desert plain and began to climb the lower foot hills of the mountains so that things began to get interesting as I have never been in the mountains at night and found it to be nearly as breath taking under the moonlight as it was during the day. 

We wound our way up along the zigzagging track, endlessly going around breathtaking hairpin bends with increasingly dizzying drops hidden in the deep shadows that even the full moon could not penetrate but that were there never the less. Finally after endlessly travelling higher and higher, Bill pulled the car into what looked to be a small village of mud brick ramshackle buildings. 

Despite the lateness of the night, the sound of the car bought the head man out of his dwelling and we were soon surrounded by the elders of the tribe who had all come out to see who would be arriving at that time of the night. The village was remote and they did not usually get many visitors at all let alone visitors at that time of night so our arrival caused quite a stir. The women and children remained indoors obediently, as was the custom, until the men folk gave their approval for an appearance. 

The village elder greeted Bill with much affection and although I could not understand anything that he was saying, it was obvious that he held Bill high in his esteem. Before I knew totally what was happening, the whole village seemed to turn out at some unspoken signal and we were in the midst of some kind of tribal party or ceremony, I could not be sure which. Even the children seemed to be out and surrounding us now, their dark obsidian eyes shining in the firelight that had been lit at the centre of the area near the side of the village that Bill told me later, had been set aside for ceremonies and rituals.

He explained to me that they were going to have a welcoming ceremony for me because they considered him to be some kind of semi god, much to his embarrassment, and as I was his “woman” that he had bought me to meet “his honorary tribe” then I too must be initiated. Briefly he told me how, when he had been climbing the peak one night, he had come across the leader who had fallen badly when tending his goat herd and had lain out exposed for many hours without being found. He had been close to death and Bill had given him blood and healed him then gone back to his village with him for shelter against the coming dawn. 

They had accepted him into their tribe without any qualms, treating him as some kind of god having healed their leader and they had not questioned why he had needed to “hide from the sun” during the daylight hours as who were they to query the gods and their ways. So, they had adopted him and now here he was again, gracing their tribe and bringing his “wife” with him.

I have to admit that I was thrilled by the term as stupid as that may sound. To be considered Bill’s woman or wife just made me shake at the thought. I was so very terribly in love with him and even if in the normal world of our times it was not the truth, it did not matter, here I was his wife and I was beyond happy. 

We were sitting in a circle now, the whole village turned out, sleep out of the question for the time being. The musicians of the village had gathered opposite us and began to play, their drums beating a hypnotic beat that was entrancing and pulsing through me. It started off as a cacophony to my ears with the high pitch of the pipes they were playing almost a screeching and alien sound to my ears but gradually as I became accustomed to it, I found it alluring and enticing me with its rhythm. Bill smiled at me, he too had felt the pull of it when he had first arrived here and he knew by the look on my face that I was experiencing the same confusion then discovery that he had previously felt. 

‘Do you feel it?’ he asked as he leant in and brushed his lips to my ear. I nodded, I couldn’t speak, I was lost to the atmosphere. The most exotic looking man then appeared in front of me carrying a bowl of some kind of drink, holding it out to me and urging me to take it. I looked at Bill who was explaining that this was the village Shaman and that he was offering me a drink to “open my mind and free my soul,” as a kind of test or initiation. Bill looked apologetically at me, ‘It is expected that you drink, to refuse would be an insult and beneath the …’ he hesitated embarrassed, ‘wife of the, err god, not to take the offering.’ 

With trepidation I took a small sip of the evil smelling concoction but was surprised by the taste. It had an earthy herby taste and although it was not something that I would have chosen to drink, I did manage to drink deeply and to keep it down. The Shaman seemed to be surprised by this and I wondered why but thought nothing more of it. 

Looking up at the stars in the darkness, I was gazing in wonder at their beauty when I suddenly gasped. They were moving across the sky as though the night had sped up and the stars were rushing towards the dawn. I looked at Bill and suddenly saw him not as he was normally to me but he was glowing, colours swirling around his head in a halo of patterns, his eyes iridescent blue and shimmering as he looked at me with wonder. I held out my hand to stroke his face and all the colours of the rainbow sparkled out of my finger tips and spun out into the air. ‘Bill,’ I managed to whisper in my shocked state, ‘what is happening to me?’

Bill beckoned the Shaman over and spoke to him but I did not understand what they were saying. He then explained it to me. ‘The Shaman is asking what do you see, he seems very excited and wants to know what you are feeling and seeing. The potion only opens the minds of those with what he calls enlightenment.’ Bill’s voice was coming to me through the air as though it was a million miles away. I could see he was looking at me and so was the Shaman but I was too busy looking at the colours that were pouring out from them to answer, they were beautiful. 

The Shaman was now very excited and was saying something to Bill and appeared to be urging him to do something. I could not focus on anything; they were both moving in slow motion and becoming more and more vague before my eyes. I did not know what was happening but I could feel myself starting to float so I thought, colours and darkness mixing and swirling in my mind. I could see other things too, I saw the swimmers in my dream in the caves and they were real and alive, bowing down before their gods, worshipping them and holding them in awe. 

Then other visions swum in front of my eyes but I did not understand them at the time, it was not until much later that I realised the implications of what I had seen and how even with my insights that night, I would not have been able to change the outcome of the future. Perhaps that is what life is all about, it is predestined no matter what we think and hope or what happens, whatever is meant to be will be, even though I honestly believe that things can change if you let them. My confusion was profound just as my visions were.

Of all the visions that I had that night there was one that stayed with me and that I remembered distinctly while others faded. It was a face and it scared me. I did not know who it belonged to but I knew that if I ever came face to face with it, my life would change and destiny would take its course. 

I looked at Bill and again the Shaman was urging Bill, speaking so very vehemently that Bill seemed embarrassed. At this point the chief of the tribe came over and he too seemed to be encouraging Bill but it was the Shaman that took matters into his own hands by taking my hand and placing it in Bill’s then, half lifting us both so that we had to stand, with all the village cheering Bill picked me up and following the Shaman he took us into one of the buildings and led us to a chamber that seemed to have been set aside, unused and in a pristine state. 

The room was light tight, there was no window and only one tightly fitting door that when open would only lead into the rear of the thickly stonewalled dwelling and so would not let any light in. The chamber seemed to be cloaked in a heavy awe of mystique. In the centre of the room was a bed of many fur skins draped over some type of rope bedding, rugs of the softest weave were then draped over the skins for warmth and comfort. The Shaman laughed as he saw my face turning a deep shade of red as the implications dawned on me, the whole village wanted us to… to experience our love making in my heightened state, expecting something wonderful to befall their demi god. With the state I was in I could not even look at Bill’s face for fear he would see the lust in my luminous eyes, the beat of the drums combined with the potion and the darkness and light of the visions I was experiencing, had affected me greatly.

When the Shaman had placed my hand in Bill’s I had never before felt every fibre of his being. I felt his darkness, his hopes, his dreams and his sex all permeating through me in a kaleidoscope of colours. Then we were on our own and Bill was holding me to him. We were under the covers lying in bed and his arms were around me drawing me to him. I felt drunk with desire, uninhibited and unafraid for the first time in my life I let my body take control and I loved it and loved him. I was insatiable and he loved it. Just as suddenly, he was loving me, feeling my passion, living and giving me the darkness that was him. Everything seemed like a dream and it was darkness and light and it was enthralling. 

The beat of the drums and the playing of the pipes vibrated through me as once again I was sitting in the circle by the fire, Bill’s arms around me protectively as I sat mutely staring at the flames. I did not know what was real and what was not but I knew what Bill was feeling for me and I knew that whether or not we had just made love, it did not matter. As far as I was concerned I loved Bill and he loved me and here, in this small desert village I was his wife and that was a wonder to me. 

We stayed in the village that day and when the evening came and we emerged from our light tight chamber all the village was there to greet us with cheers. Bill told me later that the village felt honoured to have our presence and that to have us there over night in bed together, making love together, would bring fertility and thus prosperity to the tribe. I have to admit that he was looking a little cocky as he told me this and did have a smirk on his face but he did assure me that the whole tribe took this seriously and considered that they had been blessed by our presence. 

Before we left the Shaman again questioned Bill asking what I had seen when in the grips of the potion. My recollections were still hazy and so as to not disappoint I told him that I had seen wonderful things and that seemed to satisfy him. As we left he came over to me and gave me what I supposed was a blessing, chanting words over me. ‘What is he saying?’ I asked Bill.

‘He is wishing you a long life and old age and may we never be parted,’ Bill said quietly and thoughtfully as we got into the car after thanking everyone for their hospitality and we began our journey back to Marrakesh. 

I had seen the future and knew what was to come.


	15. Chapter 15

We drove back under the shining stars, Bill handling the car with his expertise. He loved driving and took to the dangerous road as though born to it. I loved the feeling of the powerful motor responding to his commands, handling the hairpin bends of the winding road like a professional racing car driver. He drove carefully but he loved speed and when finally we reached the desert floor he really let go and we flew back to Marrakech. It was exhilarating. 

A note from Heinrich was waiting for us upon our return inviting us to attend a little reception he would be holding tomorrow night for ‘those parties that have an interest in this affair. Yours etc. Heinrich.’ There was a post script too that made me blush and glow at the same time, ‘I am hoping that you are taking care of my precious Fabienne but then, knowing you, I am sure that you are. You do make a fine couple and I could not be happier for her or for you.’

‘What….?’ Bill interrupted me before I could ask any questions. ‘How does he know?’ I asked, so thrilled by Henrich’s insight. Bill smiled that small enigmatic smile that I love so very much, ‘Did you tell him?’ I asked. ‘I didn’t need to tell him, he can see for himself how very much I care for you and you care for me,’ he tenderly whispered as he took me in his arms and ran his fingers through my hair, bending me over to kiss me. 

We spent the rest of what was left of the night in the bath room luxuriating in the deep fragrant water of the tub before going to bed and falling asleep fully spent in each others arms. Upon waking the next evening I found the bed empty and going upstairs discovered Bill in his study sorting through papers. He looked up at me as I came in and smiled. He was dressed with only his silk robe thrown loosely falling around his shoulders and as he rose to come over to me it was streaming open, his body peeping out at me to tempt me. ‘Good evening my darling,’ he said into my ear as he embraced me, sweeping me off my feet and carrying me over to his comfortable chair to sit me in his lap before smothering me in kisses. 

He was looking very smug and I immediately knew that he had been up to something but did not have a clue as to what. ‘You are looking very pleased with yourself,’ I said as I squirmed in his arms, his obvious pleasure in holding me to him becoming increasingly evident from the hardness pressing into me. ‘Not half as pleased as I intend to be if you will let me have my way with you,’ he purred. I melted at his words and was putty in his hands as he moved quickly sweeping the contents of the desk onto the floor and gently lifting me onto the desk top. 

I am blushing recalling the pleasure of the moment. I can still feel the wood of the desk against my skin and the smell of his slightly musky spicy cologne that he knew I associated with him and that he also knew I loved, the patchouli top notes melding with his own quintessence and covering me with eroticism as it poured into my soul. I can feel the coolness of his body pressed close to mine, the feel of his chest hair rubbing softly against me and I can taste his skin, his lips and his very essence as we took each other. I can feel him in me, filling me so completely, his body fitting mine as though we were meant to be and I can feel his very soul spreading through and taking me with him as he reached his peak.

With anyone else I would not have dreamt to have such abandoned and wanton sex as I did with Bill, but with him it was so very different. I had never thought or dreamt before meeting him that I would be so desperately needy, that I would think nothing of having him at any time or in any place, but I was enamoured with him. I could not get enough and would never get enough. He was my teacher, my lover and my first as far as I was concerned and I was his for how ever long he wanted to take me. 

‘Come on get dressed, we have a reception to attend,’ he said as I once again sat in his arms after we had our fill of each other. ‘And Fabienne, I have bought you a little something that perhaps if you like, you might wear tonight.’ Full of excitement about the mysterious reception and wondering what it could be that Bill had bought me, I made my way down to the bedroom to get changed. 

I don’t know exactly how he had managed it as I had not noticed it before, but hanging on the back of the door of the bedroom was a beautiful gown encrusted in golden beads that shimmered in the soft light. It was the most exquisite dress that I had ever seen. I turned as I heard his soft tread coming down the stairs behind me. 

I was running my hands over the intricate beading, a concoction of whimsical delight shimmering deliciously on the hanger then I spotted the Parisienne label sewn into the gown. ‘Bill,’ I almost shouted as I threw my arms around his neck and smothered him in kisses. ‘How did you ever manage, where did you get …’ I couldn’t even finish a sentence due to my excitement. It was wonderful, like having a piece of home next to my skin. 

‘We will be late if you don’t get dressed, here let me help you,’ and with skilful fingers he unbuttoned my simple cotton house dress that I had thrown on after our love making and he slipped me into the darling golden creation, then he stood back to admire the effect. However, much to my surprise he was shaking his head. ‘No, this won’t do, the neckline needs something,’ he stood frowning at me then he swiftly retrieved a black velvet box from the draw in one of the carved tables in the corner of the room and opened it, handing it to me and watching my face. 

Sitting securely on the white silk lining was an intricate golden collar made up of oblong segments all joined together just as Pharaoh or high priest would have worn and in the centre there was a golden cartouche attached; hieroglyphics spilling down the centre spelling out my name with an ankh cunningly carved at the very end of the cartouche.

Also in the velvet box there sat on either side of the necklace, the most delicately carved matching ankh shaped earrings. I looked up at him, tears filling my eyes. This was the most extravagant gift that I had ever been given and I knew that it was priceless. I looked down at the cartouche again and studied the small script. My translation may have been a little rusty but as far as I could make out it said Fabienne on one side and ‘Death is only the beginning’ on the other. 

To most people this may have seemed a strange if not morbid gift to give someone that you cared for, but to me I knew exactly what it meant. The Ancients believed that for as long as your name is spoken you will never die and that death was only the beginning, that there was so much more to come, immortality was what they sought to achieve and rebirth was the ultimate goal. I understood as soon as I read it that Bill was giving this to me as a symbolic gesture and I was touched. 

It was my Father’s beliefs and it was something that was all tied into the mysterious puzzle that we were all trying to solve. ‘Just remember my darling that I will always be close to you whenever you wear these and our love and lives together will go on in eternity just as the ankh symbolises eternal life,’ he was saying as he fastened it around my neck and then lovingly slipped the tiny earrings into my ears, caressing my ears gently as he did so and running kisses down my cheek until he found my lips. 

‘I will wear them always my love… always,’ I whispered into his mouth, ‘I promise you I will never be apart from them, they are the symbol of all that our love is and means to me and to us. Whenever you see them say my name and think of us in eternity, never to be parted.’ 

Bill stood back to take in the overall effect of the dress and accompanying necklace. His eyes skimmed over me with appreciation for what he was seeing. The look on his face made me feel like a goddess, me who have always considered my self to be plain and uninteresting to even the dullest of men, here I was with the most ravishing of all men that I had ever seen and his eyes were telling me more than his words ever could. He opened his mouth to speak but no words came out and he shook his head. ‘You look like a vision’ he finally said quietly, his words washing over me with the emotion he was feeling. ‘You are so very beautiful Fabienne.’ ‘No one has ever said that to me before Bill, no one. You make me feel beautiful, you make me feel loved.’ ‘That is because I do love you, you have made me whole again.’

Wrapping his arm around me, cloaking me in his tenderness, we left for Heinrich’s, moments such as these locked into our memories to be treasured. No amount of wealth would ever be enough to make us part with these precious times, no amount of time will diminish the feelings that we had for each other. No love songs can do justice to being reborn and starting your life over, seeing the world with different eyes, living your life only for the moments of pleasure you find in another and above all else, living your life with the sole purpose of making someone else happy. That was my only purpose in life now, for however long I am to be blessed with Bill I knew that every breath I take is for him. He has given me meaning to my life. 

If I had been expecting a large gathering when we arrived at Heinrich’s I was mistaken, but I was surprised by those few that I found there when we walked into his drawing room. George was there as too were Claude, Sasha and Raoul, all of which really surprised me. I looked at Bill but he seemed to be unperturbed by those present, in fact, he seemed to be expecting them. Heinrich appeared at that moment and nodded to Bill and kissed me on both cheeks. ‘My little Fabienne,’ he said as his eyes roamed over me, ‘you are a vision, you are beautiful and it is more than that stunning creation and extravagant necklace that makes you so. Love suits you my little one. I am glad that you are here my dear one. I think that you will be happy with tonight’s proceedings,’ he was beaming. 

It was while I was turning to take a seat that I noticed a small dark man in the corner of the room. I have said man although I instantly knew that was not the case, he was vampire and he was more than aware of me as I felt his eyes running over me before catching my eye and nodding. His appraisal had not gone unnoticed by Bill who, to my amusement, wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me close as though defiantly staking a claim on me. He may as well come straight out and said “she is mine” in his upper class English accent that I noticed he used whenever he was deadly serious about anything that he cared passionately for or in front of strangers that he didn’t want to revel his true origins to. 

‘Who is that?’ I asked him trying not to stare. ‘Oh so you have noticed him have you?’ Bill queried some what miffed. I looked at him sharply, not sure if he was being serious or not, ‘I just… I have never seen him here before and I know most of Heinrich’s … associates,’ I stammered, feeling uncomfortable and embarrassed. I had not intentionally ogled the vampire but well, he was extremely good looking and would catch anyone’s attention with his dark Spanish looks and stunningly piercing grey eyes. He was not tall, perhaps shorter than Bill by inches but he had dark curling hair, beautiful white teeth and a razor sharp moustache. His grey eyes were crystal clear and looked like they had been added with a smutty finger. He had delicate hands and wore an earring in one ear giving one the impression that in another life he could quite easily have been either a pirate or a Spanish ambassador in some foreign court leading the way in intrigue and drama. He was unique. 

‘Fabienne, gentlemen,’ Heinrich cleared his voice and drew our attention. ‘Please if you would all be seated, we can commence.’ Drinks and snacks had been passed around amongst the humans and all was ready for whatever was to come. Settling into the small chaise lounge, Bill sitting with his arm protectively draped over my shoulder pulling me into him so that no one could be mistaken of our relationship, we waited for Heinrich to commence.

‘Let me introduce you all to Raymondo De Garcia. He is a friend of ours and has been of great service to our cause. He has come from Spain via Paris bringing with him something very precious and we are all in his debt, perhaps some more than others.’

Every eye in the room was turned to look at the dark vampire standing over in the shadows of the corner of the room. He merely nodded and dismissed the praise with a haughty flick of two fingers, as though it was nothing and beneath his note. ‘No my friend,’ Heinrich protested, ‘you are being too modest. You have come through too many dangers to not receive the kudos you deserve.’ ‘Please, it is nothing Heinrich, nothing that you or … Bill,’ he nodded acknowledgement to my Bill, ‘nothing that either of you would not have done,’ and he gave a small bow of homage to them both. Well, I thought, he is certainly polite, if not diplomatic. 

Heinrich bowed his acknowledgement and I sighed. Vampires and their formalities, they are wonderfully polite at times, steeped in the old world of traditions and niceties but the time that it took to dispense with all the customary necessities could be very trying and wearing on the nerves. Heinrich must have noticed my impatience and got to the point immediately. 

‘I have invited you all here tonight as you have all been affected by the events in the old world and have in your own ways suffered but I have something good to share with you all and one of you in particular that I am sure we are all going to be pleased about. As I said, Raymondo has been through a lot to deliver a package that will give us all hope for better times. If you would like to come in now,’ Heinrich said loudly over his shoulder as he stood back from the door to let a new, here to before not seen, guest come in. 

Claude had been sitting to the left of me, closest to the door when, at the entrance of our new guest, he stood abruptly and promptly burst into tears rushing into the arms of a dark haired beauty. Bill was smiling to himself as he looked at me. ‘It is his wife, Kceniya if you are wondering,’ he explained. ‘But how, how is this that she is still alive? As I understood she had been taken and was assumed to have been…’ I hesitated. ‘I have many contacts and …’ he shrugged, trailing off modestly. ‘It was your letters that found her wasn’t it?’ Bill looked very modest and unassuming now, not willing to take any credit but I noticed that Raymondo was watching us carefully, studying our reactions and although I could not be sure, I thought that he was listening intently to our conversation. 

 

Heinrich waited patiently for Kceniya and Claude’s embrace to end and was moved by their obvious joy before he settled them and went on. ‘We have hope friends with the recovery of Claude’s dearest wife. Her escape was bought about by the assistance of Raymondo and a group of very patriotic friends and she brings good tidings. Things are not as black as those that have taken power would like us to believe. The underground resistance grows and stays strong. We may not have won the war, we may have a long battle before us but they will not have it all their own way and that my friends is the best news that we could hope for.’

‘All over the old world there are those that work in the darkness to bring about our success. Often so covert that none are aware of how powerful the movement really is. I say this to you all, do not give up hope. Our way of life depends on it.’ His eyes darted from Raymondo across to Bill’s. He need not emphasis how important the situation was, they knew only too well that his words had a double meaning and that when the others had left there would be a private discussion held between them. 

I could tell by the tone of Heinrich’s voice that he was excited, that he was holding back news and that the news was of greatest importance. I dared not think what it could be. I wanted to believe that somehow the scroll had made it through to us. That somehow we would find what we were looking for, all we had to do was wait until the guests had gone and then…..


	16. Chapter 16

The last of the guests had finally left. Claude and Kceniya arm in arm, had thanked Heinrich, Raymondo and Bill profusely. It was touching and heart-warming to see the undying gratitude from the two of them, Kceniya’s face aglow with appreciation, Claude’s with tears in his eyes and unable to speak without breaking down continually. It was hard to get them to leave so profuse were their thanks but finally they were gone and we were on our own. 

‘Shall we adjourn to my office?’ Heinrich suggested. ‘We have many things to discuss and the dawn is fast approaching. Fabienne, gentlemen…’ Heinrich escorted us to the room that he used on a nightly basis. It was large and filled with two desks of solid mahogany. The furnishings were the same as you would see in any study. There was no accommodation to the exotic surrounds here; this was purely functional and very … English in style. The walls were hidden by massive book cases lined with first and second edition tombs, a tribute to the authors and to Heinrich’s age. Everything was plush and expensive and a perhaps a true reflection of the serious mind of the owner so infrequently shown to the outside world. 

Two large chesterfield chairs were drawn up to one side of the desk and it was to these that we went, Raymondo taking one whilst I perched on the arm of the other that Bill sat down in, Heinrich striding over to the second smaller desk that I used to work at his correspondence and do his typing and various other functions each evening or when required. There was a large package on the desk, bound in brown paper. Taking off the wrappings he revealed two parcels, one much larger than the other. 

Quickly tearing the paper off the larger one, I held my breath waiting with silent anticipation, my hand tightly gripping Bill’s as we sat there watching intensely until Heinrich looked up and smiled. In his hands was a large carved wooden crucifix. If I was surprised it was nothing to the reaction of Raymondo who muttered a silent curse at the sight of the holy relic. He was scowling and it was obvious that there was some kind of deep resentment towards the church as his face was black but that was only until the old vampire deftly unscrewed the capping on the top of the thick cross and with much care he gently slid out something that I had not seen since I had left it at the convent… there it was in front of us – the scroll. 

Raymondo’s expression changed instantly and he eagerly jumped up and was beside Heinrich at vampire speed. With meticulous care the scroll was unrolled and spread out before us, laying there on the desk with its secrets beckoning us to seek the truth if we can, or if we dare. I noticed with interest that it was exactly as it had been when I placed it in its cyclinder, there was no change to the actual papyrus, it was in the same condition it had been the last time I saw it. 

For Raymondo this was the first sighting and his excitement was palpable. He stood in awe as he scanned over the rows of text and glyphs trying to look as though he knew exactly what the tiny pictures meant but failing to comprehend one single thing that he was looking at. That did not dampen his enthusiasm however when he looked down the side and saw the missing piece, his face clouded over. ‘Here,’ he pointed, ‘what is this? You had not mentioned that there was something amiss. What good is this to us if it is not complete and whole?’ His anger and disappointment filled the room.

I held up my hand and smiled a little. ‘Heinrich, the other parcel, would you please open it?’ The older vampire immediately tore open the smaller package with much interest. If he was surprised by its contents he did not register it, his face was like a child on Christmas day, expectant and wearing the hope of one that desperately wants to be given the one thing that they have wished for all year except in this case the wish had been for a lot longer than just the last twelve months.

Discarding the paper and string he picked up what looked to be an old leather writing set, the kind that travellers use when on holidays, plain brown leather with a zip fastening around the side, very worn and of no consequence. It had obviously seen better days and I wondered where they who had packed it with so much thought had got it and what Heinrich was going to think of such a dingy article. It looked so shabby and tattered that it was ready to be thrown out. 

He placed it on his desk in front of him, took a seat and gestured to it. I turned to Bill and saw his eyes shining. ‘May I?’ His voice had a tremor in it and I was surprised but I should have known that he would guess what was so exciting about this non-descript piece of cast away nonsense I thought to myself. With shaking hands Bill undid the zip and opened out the pouch with care. Raymondo sat forward staring transfixed now at the case too. What was going through their heads I thought as I too looked at it, my interest peaked by the reaction of the three of them and what was to come if my hopes had been founded.

I stared hard; it did not look any different to any other writing case. To one side the flap contained pens and pencils, a small bottle of Indian ink, a rubber and a small ruler and on the other side was a writing pad and the usual accompanying bits and pieces, everything in fact that travellers need to write letters with when far away from home. So what was the fascination, was it what they hoped to find hidden in it that mesmerised them so much? 

Reaching into his pocket Bill pulled out his set of keys and with it came the tiny pocket knife that was attached to his key ring. He opened it and using the razor sharp blade of the knife, he very gingerly slid it into the side of the felt lining of the case, lifting it cautiously with the utmost of care. He then produced a pair of tweezers and warily inserted them in between the felt backing and the leather case. I held my breath, I don’t know what I expected to be honest but when he slowly drew out what looked to be like a piece of papyrus I was immediately in a frenzy to look at it. Hah, my theory had been right, I was ecstatic.

Bill’s face was lit with satisfaction and Heinrich, much to my surprise, was almost in tears. I was beaming like a silly school girl with satisfaction and relief. I was so very chuffed as Bill would say that I clapped my hands and giggled with excitement and the three vampires all turned there to look at me. ‘Where, where was it? How did you know where to find it you beautiful wonderful girl,’ 

Heinrich asked as he excitedly picked up the piece and like fitting in the last piece of a jigsaw puzzle he placed it neatly against the border of the scroll. It matched perfectly.  
‘Look,’ he gasped as we strained forward to see. Bill inhaled deeply, something that I had only seen him do when he was very excited and generally only in the bedroom, the thought made me blush and he quickly turned to me smiling, his fangs partially extended and his face wore a look of promise of things to come before turning his attention back to the discovery at hand so great was his joy at the find that this exhibition of the feelings we had for each other did not even embarrass him as it normally would. 

‘Fabienne asked Sister Agatha to investigate the seal of the cylinder and that was where it was hidden, didn’t you?’ Bill voice was confident in his guess. ‘What made you think that it would be there?’ Raymondo spoke with something like respect in his voice. I shrugged a little embarrassed by the attention of the dark handsome strange vampire. 

‘To me it didn’t make sense that the ancients would go to all the trouble of keeping hidden so well something so precious if it was not whole and then I was in our little library here reading and came across a piece discussing the many ways that the ancients used to foil tomb robbers and such, they loved tricks and traps and puzzles and that got me thinking that perhaps what we had assumed was some kind of accident befallen to the scroll was in fact a very deliberate act.’ Bill was nodding in agreement with my hypothesis as I went on. ‘So I started to think that if that was a possibility and that the scroll was of such significance then it would not make sense to send it off to a far land, if indeed that was the case, without keeping it altogether but setting a puzzle that only those in the know would understand.’

I paused for breath before continuing. ‘If in deed my speculation was correct then the only place that none of us had thought to look for the missing piece was there staring straight at us.’ If vampires could breathe then both Heinrich and Raymondo would now be holding theirs, waiting expectantly for the answer. 

‘Do you recall what the seal had inscribed on the top of it?’ I asked looking directly at Heinrich. He frowned for a moment then his face cleared. ‘Yes, it said “To find the truth seekers of knowledge, look within” but we did so I still don’t see…’ Bill held up his hand to silence him. ‘Ah but that is just it, we fell into their crafty trap and took the words to literally mean look within in the cylinder and yet we know that there was nothing but the incomplete scroll there. But if that was the case had we been blind to what the actual words were saying?’ I looked expectantly at Heinrich and his eyes glimmered with a small inkling to the truth but never the less he allowed me my moment in the sun and I went on with a flourish. ‘The words did not refer to the cylinder, no it was much simpler than that, in fact so simple that the crafty ancients knew that human nature being human nature no one would think it to be so simple a statement.’

“To find the truth seekers of knowledge, look within”… look within the seal! And there is was as Sister Agatha discovered when I wrote and asked her to investigate if there was any possibility that the seal was hollow and contained anything in it,’ I finished in triumph. With a look of pride on his face Bill wrapped his arm around me and gave me a hug, Raymondo’s eyes taking in the scene with much interest. 

‘My compliments to you Mademoiselle,’ he bowed a little and kissed my hand in salute, ‘not only do you have a pleasing …excuse my English if it is not correct persona, but you have brains to go with your beauty.’ I blushed profusely at the compliment and was more than a little thrilled to feel through the bond, Bill’s emotions boil. In my naiveté at the time I took it to mean that he was perhaps a little, just a soupçon jealous. I was to find out later that it was perhaps only a small part of what he was feeling but again I am getting ahead of myself so I must stop and return to the scroll and what was to come from our examination.

So now with anticipation we all turned our thoughts back to the scroll and the missing text that was sitting waiting to be deciphered. Heinrich retrieved a magnifying glass from his desk draw and handed it to me, the vampire’s eyes did not need such a thing but he didn’t want to limit our scrutiny just to their own endeavours, he wanted to include me in the inspection in case they missed anything that may be of importance and so we began to study the text with a renewed zeal.

‘See here where the tear is, that piece of text,’ Heinrich pointed with his finger, ‘ends with “the pathway to enlightenment is to be found” and then nothing but now we shall see. Bill what do you think, you are the one with the most experience, how do you interpret this now that we have the missing piece?’ I watched Bill as he gazed down at the ancient piece of papyrus. With my limited knowledge all I could make out was one symbol that stood out in a cartouche but I was loath to voice my opinion deferring to those with more insight.

But as I studied Bill’s face I realised that to him it was clear. His eyes shone with an excitement that thrilled me and my heart pounded. I held my breath waiting for him to speak and when he did I was exulted. The pathway to enlightenment was there before him to take and he knew where and how to find it. 

When he finally spoke his voice held a timbre and authority that held me spellbound. Slowly he uttered the words from the past, the writings and teachings of the ancients coming alive in front of my eyes as I saw in my mind a priest dictating to a scribe the hidden rites to a profound treasure. 

‘The path to enlightenment,’ he repeated as the hieroglyphics came alive, ‘is to be found – in the house of the Lord of Creation.’ He hesitated as his finger ran over the next glyph, ‘speak, I think it says, speak Lord Ptah - we seekers of the noble truth pay homage to you.’ He hesitated again before smiling and going on. ‘To slake your thirst for the truth, bow down and worship at his feet.’ 

Bill’s eyes shone as he looked firstly at Heinrich then across to me, indicating with his delicate finger the symbol of Ptah and what the god was holding. I drew my breath in. ‘So it’s true!’ I exclaimed. He nodded before finding his voice. ‘Yes,’ he hissed in his excitement, ‘and I know where it is.’ He said it calmly enough now not wanting to get their hopes up but he couldn’t hide the anticipation flowing through him that I could feel through our bond, the rush of adrenalin and elation was palpable.

‘Where, where is it?’ Raymondo was shaking with anticipation, ‘Where?’ His voice was urgent but there was something else in it, something that suddenly I felt wasn’t quite right and I didn’t like. I looked at him and suddenly realised that he had a hard look to him, almost a ruthless appearance for all his good looks and smooth ways. 

Both Heinrich and Bill had explained that he was old, older than even Heinrich, having been turned in fourteen seventy eight, the same year Ferdinand II of Aragorn and Isabella I of Castile had dreamt up a little project of their own to supposedly ensure the orthodoxy of those who converted to Catholicism from Judaism and Islam. It was just a little something that today is infamous still – The Spanish Inquisition. How or by whom he had been turned was not something that Raymondo was willing to share but it was obvious that he had a deep loathing of the Catholic Church and religion in general.

It was also obvious, or it was to me, that he was from the old world in every sense of the word and for some reason that scared me. I didn’t know why but it just did so I was glad when Bill spoke again he did not reveal anything specific but instead hurriedly began writing a note to be sent off. I don’t know if he too felt a reluctance or mistrust of Raymondo that caused him to be cautious or whether he could feel my emotions through our bond but for whatever reason I was thankful that he kept his cards to himself making the excuse that he needed confirmation of a few things before he could be sure that he was on the right track. 

The night was now late and dawn was now not many hours away when we parted from Heinrich and his house guest Raymondo, having been offered safe quarters until his return to France could be arranged, agreeing to meet on the following evening to discuss things further and hopefully Bill would have some answers to the cables he would send. It was not until we were safely back at his house that both of us felt at liberty to talk freely again.

‘You do not trust him?’ he asked me referring to Raymondo the minute we were in the door and he swept me into his arms studying my face with a worried look on his. ‘No it is not that I don’t trust him it is something more than that, I think that he has ulterior motives but I don’t know what.’ I shrugged. ‘Good, I think that you are right. I don’t know what it is either but there is something. We need to be wary and that is why I have made separate arrangements that only you and I and my contact will know of but Fabienne, I want you to be careful, you must promise me this. I don’t want you taking any risks, you are too precious to me,’ he implored. 

I promised him I would. I would promise him the moon and the stars if it would make him happy. I would promise him anything to have him hold me the way he did in his arms, to take me so tenderly and make me feel like a queen the way he did, to soar into the heavens as we made love over and over again until the daylight took him to that other world that I could not follow. How could I not promise the love of my life anything and everything I asked myself, heedless of the true consequences of my words as there was nothing that I would not do for him, nothing on this earth or any other plane that I knew or could imagine, he was my life and my soul now. I loved him beyond measure and reason. 

We woke the next evening to find messages from George, Heinrich and a cable from of all places Luxor in Egypt or Thebes as it was known in ancient times. He opened this last one first and I watched his face for a reaction. He grinned and handed me the response to the cable he had arranged George to send off when he had sent his note around to him the night before, the one that I am sure Raymondo had been dying to discover its contents. I read it eagerly but the expression on my face while reading it must have been a picture to behold for Bill who couldn’t quite stop himself from laughing. 

‘Bill, what is this? What does it mean?’ I asked pointing at the words that I slowly repeated, ‘may the bird of paradise be ever humble in your presence?’ He drew me into him and laughed as he picked me up and spun me around and kissed me. ‘It means dearest little one that we are off to Luxor to go temple exploring. So, you had better get packing and quickly. We are leaving in two hours,’ he grinned.


	17. Chapter 17

I do not know how Bill arranged it or what contacts he had used in Marrakesh but I suspected that Georges pulled a lot of strings for his Britisher to be able to get us both on a flight to Cairo in such short a space of time, but somehow he managed it. We had packed hurriedly and m

He hoped that Heinrich would understand his reasons for being so close mouthed. He knew that he too had some doubts about Raymondo but they had not had the opportunity to discuss it since the discovery of the new information they had learnt from the scroll last night, everything seemed to be moving so quickly now and for some reason we were overtaken by a feeling of extreme urgency. After so long searching for answers, the truth was nearly in our grasp and we didn’t want to waste one more moment least other interested parties somehow stumble upon the truth. After all, who knew what we would find or the implications there in. 

I will not go into the details of the flight and the many stopovers at airbases many miles out of the enemy’s range as even now I do not want to recall how horrific the journey was. Because of the length of time the journey would take, should it be necessary I was to pose as a grieving widow carrying out her husband’s eccentric last wishes by accompanying his body to his final resting place in the land of the Pharaohs and trust me dear friend’s, had it been necessary I would have played my part well for just the sight of the coffin that protected Bill was enough to bring tears to my eyes. I hated to think he was in there even though I knew he would be safer there than taking the chance of being caught in the sun but that didn’t make it any easier for me and I dreaded to think what it must have been like for Bill to have to climb into his wooden tomb whilst still awake. It was terrible but the only option we could think of.

But even that was not enough to provide total safety for him as at one stop over the cargo hold was searched, and to my horror the coffin was opened. Thankfully being deep within the plane’s interior it was safe from the sunlight that was pouring down on the plane sitting outside on the makeshift tarmac of the desert stop over, the camouflage netting doing little by way of providing protection from the blazing sun. Never the less, my heart was in my mouth until we arrived safely in Cairo where we were met by Bill’s trusted contact Majid Rassoul. He was human.

It was close to dusk when the plane landed and not much left of the sun by the time all my documents and travel papers had been examined and been given approval. I silently thanked Georges and whoever it was that he had working for him for doing such a worthy job with the arrangements and was thankful too to Majid when he stowed Bill’s coffin in the back of a covered truck and speedily took us towards the river and the felucca he had arranged to take us down river to Luxor and Thebes. 

The moment that night fell I was in the hold of the small boat anxiously awaiting the return to life of my beloved Bill. Before the lid had even moved I knew he was back with me, my heart felt the warmth of his presence, and I gave a pray of thanks to whatever god or gods that had made it possible for him to come back to me safely from the underworld that took him at every rising of the sun, and for our safe arrival too. Much to Bill’s amusement, I threw myself on him before he had barely had a chance to blink. I was covering his sweet face in my kisses and tears with him holding me in his arms until I could compose myself, my joy to have him with me again was unparalleled. 

‘Oh Bill I missed you terribly,’ I whispered into his mouth, my tears falling onto his cheeks as we kissed. ‘Darling what is it my pet, you are shaking.’ How could I tell him what it was like to see him lying there in a coffin, so pale and cold? It sent shivers through me and bought home to me just how much I had come to love him and the hopelessness of our situation. He may live on into eternity just as the ancients believed but I would not and our parting would be bitter for my part in the least. No, I could not discuss this with him, it hurt me too much and besides, he had already had too many goodbyes in his life. Instead I mumbled that I had missed him and been fearful of something happening to him on the trip and left my feelings to myself, we were to be together under the moonlight on a felucca sailing down the ancient river of life and had three nights to share the experience with each other so I did not want anything to spoil it and I pushed the thought into that room in my mind that I didn’t want to visit but still, the door remained there opened a crack always tempting me to explore within its confines. 

It had been arranged that we would take our time going down the river to allay any suspicions that may have been aroused by our arrival. We had no proof that we had drawn any attention but it would do no harm to be cautious. Majid was to act as my guide during the day whenever we stopped off at any of the regular tourist sites on our trip and as there were only two crew and both had been hand picked and were to be trusted implicitly, we felt we were safe enough to relax a little and enjoy the scenery.  
I fell in love with the river and the majesty of my surrounds. The dazzling daylight vistas that unfolded as we floated gently along the river just as so many ancients had done before us enhanced the expedition as each hour passed by. But the nights, the nights under the full moon, the silvery light turning the reed beds and green banks with their sandy backdrops into scenes from a black and white movie, surreal and exotic and stunningly sumptuous – it took my breath away and fired my imagination.  
We held each other in our arms and sat watching the majestic surrounds go floating by us as though we were standing still and the banks was moving past us in its nightly processional show. We lay on cushions on the deck and gazed up at the stars in awe at the Milky Way while we travelled down its earthly reflection, marvelling at the sight just as the ancients had done and finding it just as easy as they had believed that the mighty river was but a poor reflection of the night sky, a vision for mere mortals that the gods had set upon mother earth for their or our amusement, whichever was not for me to say.

With Bill holding me tightly in his strong arms I felt invincible to time and its ravages. If this was a glimpse of the eternity spoken of by the priests of the temples and their followers then I was a convert. I would happily exist in the temporal plain of the nightly underworld, forever waiting for the rebirth that came with the dawn and the appearance of Ra the sun god if it meant that we would be together, never to be parted after all, the ancients believed that death was only the beginning and as I was drawn deeper and deeper into the past and our search, I was finding that perhaps this was something of more substance than I had ever imagined with my previously devout Catholic beliefs.   
All my previously held principles and philosophies I questioned, and not merely because I was in love with a creature that to the rest of the world would be considered an abomination either. Like Bill and Heinrich, I found myself asking the same questions. Why am I here, why are we here and how did we come about? What is the scheme of things, are we just an accident, a natural progression of evolution as Charles Darwin believed or was there something more and if there was something more, if there was a god or gods then didn’t that god or those gods create Bill and his race too? The longer I existed on the boat and embraced the surrounds, the deeper my questions became.

Bill felt it too, the deeper we became engulfed by the ambience of the atmosphere, the more philosophical our conversations became until we merely had to look at each other and could feel the other’s thoughts through our bond and words became unnecessary. We didn’t realise it at the time but we were becoming so much a part of each other that no speech was necessary, a mere glance said a thousand words. That is the true nature of love, the love that I had always believed in yet had never dreamt that I would ever find. It is all consuming, powerful and eternal and I believed that it would go on into the aeons of time.

As much as I wanted to learn the truth from our search, another part of me never wanted this voyage to end. I wallowed in the time and the place that we had together and wanted it to go on forever but like all things it came quickly to an end when on the third night we tied up at a small private mooring Majid had arranged and quickly made our way to a riverside villa that he owned. It was a safe haven and provided light tight accommodation in the underground cellar, very similar to the arrangement Bill had in his own home back in Marrakesh but not as luxuriously appointed I noticed.

We sat in Majid’s garden courtyard, talking quietly to him well into the night, only the sound of the tinkling water from a fountain gently spilling into the still reflection pool that featured in the centre of the courtyard broke the silence of the night, the thick walls surrounding the villa blocking out the soft lapping of the mighty river as it rolled on through the darkness as it had always done through the centuries.

I sat and listened to Bill and Majid talking of other times, adventures they had previously had when they had met in younger and more peaceful times and all the while I ate from the plate of dates, pomegranates, honeyed figs, salty goat’s cheeses and unleavened breads. Bowls over flowed with stuffed olives, honey cakes dripped with sweetness and filled with spices that sent my taste buds reeling and then joy of joys, a dish of Turkish Delight that I am sure Bill had requested of my host, just for me. I saw the smile on his lips as he watched Armenia, Majid’s woman, set it down in front of me and I felt his eyes watching me taking bite after bite of the soft sensual treat. I felt his excitement growing at each mouthful and blushed for the pleasure of it and for things to come later in the night when we were finally alone after so many days.

I thanked Majid for the care he had taken in providing me with such a feast. It was all simple food from the land that had been tilled by those others that had come before me over the centuries, life giving and nourishing, sustaining and satisfying in every way from a land of extremes that only survived by the grace of the gods and the Nile inundation. I was grateful and touched by the trouble he had taken and told him so. 

We went on talking for hours, Bill explaining that Majid came from a family that were somewhat well known in the antiquities field but for all the wrong reasons. There had been tomb robbers for millenniums, that was a fact, and despite all the elaborate precautions the priests and designers of the tombs took, countless riches had been plundered. Since the recent discoveries in the Valley of the Kings of the boy Pharaohs tomb, more and more treasure seekers had flocked to the ancient land but no one was more notorious than a certain family that lived nearby to the Pharaohs resting place. Majid was distantly related to them but shared none of the traits that had made them notorious, instead he had taken the opposite path in life after meeting Bill on one of his many sojourns.

Bill’s passion in his search for the truth had inspired the young Egyptian and fired his imagination and even their first meeting had been a profound one, Bill coming across the youthful Majid one night when he was scouring the ruins of a temple and Majid had been there too, for other reasons, and had fallen into a pit trap laid thousands of years ago finding himself trapped just as the architects had wanted. Had it not been for Bill he would have become one of many to have met their fate in such circumstances but Bill had seen something in the young lad that he had thought him worthwhile and not beyond redemption. 

That was the beginning of a new life for Majid and from that moment on he devoted himself to tracking down plundered artefacts and sending them off to Bill for safe keeping in the hopes that one day a more enlightened and less corrupt system would appreciate the heritage that was theirs and such treasures could be returned to their rightful owners.  
So it was that whenever Majid came across anything of important historical value he would contact Bill and of course he would continue searching for anything that he thought may be of interest or relate to the creation myth that Bill had been so keen to find. When Bill telegraphed him the other night he was ecstatic that he could help him and made all the arrangements he deemed necessary to ensure a safe stay, he was more than happy to be of help to the creature that had saved him in more ways than one. 

‘The Temple will be closed to visitors tomorrow night. I have made sure that those who still practice the old ways are guarding the shrine. No one could have tampered with anything in the time that it has taken you to get here. I do not know what it is that you are seeking but if it is there and has not already been found then we will find it I promise you this brother,’ Majid assured Bill fervently. ‘Thank you my friend and I promise you this, when and if the time comes I will explain the importance of this mission to you but I can’t just yet. I hope that you understand this? If anything it is for your own safety.’

‘There are others who seek the same goal,’ Bill continued on, ‘and they are not so scrupulous in their reasons.’ Majid nodded, ‘I understand brother, all will be done as you have asked and is within my power. We have friends in many forms, the practitioners of the old ways not being the least. They know of your many quests and seek to help you in your endeavours.’ Bill nodded. ‘Good, tomorrow night it is then,’ he smiled, his eyes glowing iridescent blue with excitement. ‘But now my friend we must say goodnight. Fabienne is dropping with fatigue and the sun is pulling me from afar. Good night my friend and thank you, you are a true brother and seeker of the truth.’

With much effort we had restrained ourselves on our boat trip but now finally, the minute we were alone, our passions were unleashed like a tidal wave. The need and longing for each other erupted in an unstoppable force so potent that nothing could have come between us at that moment. My body burnt with desire to have Bill in my arms, filling my body with his. I could feign no lady like sensibilities, they were for others. For me in that moment, my desires were all that mattered and my one desire was to be engulfed by Bill. ‘Take me,’ was all I could manage to murmur into his mouth as he clamped his lips over mine, his fangs protruding so much in his excitement that they grazed my lips and I bled freely into his mouth. He moaned at the taste of my blood and in one swift movement had me on the bed and was straddling me as he fumbled to get himself free. ‘Fabienne, my sweet love,’ he whispered into my ear and he took me with all the passion and determination of our first time together. 

So it was that our night passed into the day making love, experiencing the pleasures of our bodies fused into one. Insatiable always. Nothing was sacred between us, we had no secrets and freely gave up our very being for each other, our bodies were joined together like two animals devouring each other. I could not get enough of the taste of him, the heat of the passions that he unleashed, the moment of ecstasy as he touched me like no other man had. I wanted him now, I wanted him today, tomorrow and all the days ever after into eternity. He was mine and no other’s. I belonged to him totally and utterly and never would find such adoration again with anyone other than with my Bill, my Guillaume. 

The reams that have been written about love will never do justice to how I felt about my vampire. How could they? No one in all of history has ever loved as I have loved. He is my earth, my world, my food and my very breath. I make no apologies for my Gaelic enthusiasm. It is me and it is how I feel and will always feel till the end of time or the end of my days, whichever comes first. I know that I will never love like this again, I will never feel the need that I feel just from him entering a room or giving me a simple smile, a look that touches my heart and soul. It is heaven and he is manna to me. 

We clung to each other for the rest of what was left of the night, fearful to let go least dreams take us far apart and we wake to a reality that neither one of us can foresee, a world where we are apart and my heart breaks at the thought. So we hold each other tightly and slip into that other existence to await the coming of the new day and what it holds for us.

Are we to find the truth today and can we ever be the same once we have. Only time will tell.


	18. Chapter 18

I slept through the day to wake safely in Bill’s arms. For once he was already awake and was lying there gently cradling me to him when I awoke. ‘Fabienne, my love,’ he whispered into my mouth as he gently took me. He was so very loving, so tender. It was as though he could read my vulnerability and wished to banish it from my mind. When he slipped into me and took me soaring to that special place of ecstasy that only he could touch, everything but the moment fled into the dark shadows, only the shimmering light of orgasm surrounded us in its sparkling cocoon. 

As we lay in each other’s arms sated, basking in the afterglow of our love making, Bill shared his soul with me in a way that he had not done before. Of course he had spoken of his maker Lorena and told me things of his past before, small things but significant to him, this time there was something different. We had recognised something in each other when we first met, our spark of loneliness and vulnerability, but just how very deep this void had been in Bill’s life, he told me that night, tore through my heart as I listened to him. 

‘For years my love, long endless dark years after being turned I wondered as a chattel on Lorena’s arm. Nothing but a toy for her to play with,’ he recounted haltingly to me, ‘and I …. I deserved it. I deserved all the horror I witnessed, the debauchery, the …’ ‘No Bill, no!’ I cried, ‘why did you deserve it, how can you even think of such a thing. You are so good, so kind and caring.’ He looked into my eyes and looked away, struggling to speak until he rasped, ‘I … I was a soldier and I killed. I killed innocent men like myself, family men, husbands, lovers, sons and brothers. I fought and killed in a war that I did not believe in but I still fought and men died because of me.’ 

‘For so many years I walked with Lorena and even after breaking away I have existed as a shadow of a man, a shell surviving but not really living, the dread of eternity on my shoulders wrapping me in a dark cloak of unending endurance for my penance until… until I found you. You give me your love so freely my Fabienne but you give me more than just your heart, you give me belief in myself that I have not had since I was human. You saved me, my heart and my soul. You have healed me and made me complete again,’ he hugged me tightly to him.

I do not know why he felt he needed to share this with me, perhaps like me he had some kind of premonition of things to come but it does not matter why he did, I will never forget that he did and that it was like reading the ending of a book, the end being something that you had hoped and hoped for but were not sure of until you read the final page. He had said that I completed him but he knew that his words completed me too as we lay there locked in an embrace of love and understanding until it was time to get up.

‘Good evening Bill, good evening Fabienne,’ Majid greeted us when we finally emerged from our room. ‘I trust you had a pleasant rest?’ Bill’s lips quivered with faint amusement as we sat down and his hand skimmed up my leg underneath the table, his sense of play fullness once again restored. My pulse quickened and I knew that he had done it deliberately to excite me. I pinched the back of his hand to make him stop but it merely amused him more, much to my embarrassment. ‘Thank you for your hospitality, it was a most welcome relief to us both,’ he smirked. Really he was like a naughty school boy at times I thought to myself as he sat there grinning at me. 

‘Everything is arranged for your safe passage through the temple,’ Majid was saying, ‘I will be your guide as far and the temple precinct then Didia, the high priest will escort you.’ Bill looked at Majid questioningly. ‘Didia? Wasn’t that the name of the high priest of Ptah at the time of the great Ramses?’ ‘I salute you Bill, yes you are quite right, that was the name of the high priest at the time of the great one. Perhaps you will have much in common with him to discuss,’ Majid replied somewhat enigmatically. ‘Once Fabienne has dined all will be ready for your departure.’

Just as Majid had said he would, he took us across the great river and we were soon standing on the bank opposite his villa. ‘Welcome to Thebes,’ he smiled, ‘ancient capital of the gods.’ Moving swiftly he then escorted us through a labyrinth of streets and thoroughfares until we came out into a grand space, dark shapes looming up in front of our eyes looking like giant stone trees in the evening darkness. Even in the gloom of the night it was hard not to be impressed by the majesty of the silent place before us. It was spectacular and enthralling. 

Suddenly we were not alone for there in front of us, seemingly gliding towards us down a long walkway between huge columns, there came the small diminutive figure of what even I in my ignorance I could recognise as a priest. His presence and aura was unmistakeable. Majid bowed deeply and Bill nodded his head with great reverence. I too nodded as was the custom when one meets a vampire for it was obvious to me, just as much as it was to Bill, that he was a fellow creature of the night and he was ancient, as ancient as the very temples that surrounded us. 

There was no mistaking him for anything other than what he was. His features could have been carved out of the reliefs on the walls of the temples themselves. He was ancient Egypt come to life. From his white pleated robe to his shaven head, Kohl lined eyes with the widget so perfectly outlined in malachite to his sandalled feet and facial profile; he personified everything that I had always visualised an ancient to look like. 

For a moment I wondered who had turned him for it must have been in ancient times that he had met his fate. Did he know the secret of where they came from and if he did, then why had he not told the world but he was not the kind of creature that one asks such questions of I felt, to do so may incur the wrath of the gods and that was not something we were here to do. We were here to learn the truth and we were so close now that I kept silent. 

‘Welcome to Thebes fellow seekers of truth. May you find what you seek here amongst the dead and the living. I am Didia, high priest of Ptah, Lord of Creation.’ He bowed to us and nodded to Majid in a sign of farewell. ‘We will meet again brother, before Amun Ra smiles down again from upon the celestial heights. Follow me if you will my willing pupils, I am your tutor of the underworld come to teach you the knowledge you seek, gods willing.’ His voice was no more than a whisper upon the night air and he turned once again and glided back in the direction he came from with us following quickly in his wake.

We came to an abrupt halt at a T intersection between two massive columns to the left and right of us and a wall covered in hieroglyphics with a stone doorway standing open in front of us. ‘What is the knowledge you seek, you who are from the new world?’ he asked of Bill. How he knew that he was not English I did not know but I had the feeling that there was so much he did know and that I would love to have asked him, if only time permitted. As I was thinking this he turned to look at me. ‘All in good time my Fabienne,’ he whispered replicating Bill’s voice to perfection. My mouth dropped open at his voice and words. He smiled. ‘Do not be alarmed. It is a gift of the gods, I can read auras and the memories they hold within them. Yours my dear one is filled with love and beauty and sadness.’

‘But yours,’ he turned to Bill, ‘you too have love and tenderness but you have too the destiny of one who will be great, a ruler and leader, teacher and protector. What is it that you seek, that burns within you like the love you have for your human burns within you? Speak your desires and the lord of creation will look kindly upon you.’   
‘The path to enlightenment is to be found in the house of the Lord of Creation speak Lord Ptah - we seekers of the noble truth pay homage to you,’ Bill quoted. ‘We wish to bow down and worship at his feet.’ Didia gasped. Despite his great wealth of knowledge, all the aeons and centuries he had witnessed, never before had he been so shocked by any spoken words. He stepped back suddenly clutching his chest as though forcibly hit by a blow.

‘How is it possible that you speak the words written in my own hand so long ago?’ His eyes became glazed as he gazed back in time to an ancient world so very different to today and he saw a young human priest writing in a hidden language the very words that this stranger from a land that did not yet exist in the cradle of civilisation, the key to an existence known only to a very few.

Bill dropped to his knees in reverence to the priest, overcome by the thought that this was a moment in his kind’s history that would be forever marked as a turning point. ‘You have been bought here by the gods and you shall not go unrewarded. Do not bow to me, I am merely the servant of the great one, you shall see all that there is to see then be the judge of whether or not your journey has been in vein.’

In deference to my inadequate human eye sight, Didia took a torch from a bracket on the stone wall and muttering a lighting spell it burst into flames, burning brightly with its light. He turned to his left and walked some fifty paces and stopped, then stood muttering some kind of enchantment as he ran his hands over the carved outline of a cartouche. Silently a doorway appeared and swung open, the darkness would have been impenetrable had it not been for the light from his torch to shine the way.

‘Follow in the steps of the Pharaohs seekers of truth and behold the wonders of the gods,’ the inscription on the portal of the doorway said, Bill’s soft melodious voice quoting the glyphs carved with so much reverence all that time ago. The two vampires plunged eagerly into the narrow passage but I am ashamed to say I hesitated, the weight of time falling on my shoulders like an impenetrable cloak. For one spilt second I stood on the threshold of discovery, frightened by what may change my world, our world, that of humans and all other creatures residing on this small planet in an infinite universe.

Bill stopped and turned, his eyes shining with excitement but within them there was something else, disappointment, disappointment in me. Shame flooded me as I gazed into the depths of his soul. Then suddenly, as though I had been newly born, a rush of love and understanding and courage swept through me, no matter what the truth was I owed it to Bill and to Heinrich and all the others of their kind to find the strength to face the future. I stepped over the threshold and he smiled and nodded, taking my hand, and together we followed in the steps of the past. 

The passage that we found ourselves in was secret and never before seen by any but the priests, the Pharaohs and the artisans that had used all the skills in their power to create the magnificently carved art work on the walls that dazzled the eye and infused the senses with the magic that was a time long ago lost. These were not the scribbling’s found on the walls of the tombs within the Valley of the Kings. Oh no, they paled into comparison with magnificence of the passageway. These were truly created as homage to the gods and they were more than pleasing. 

If I had days or weeks, years, decades, centuries even it would not have been enough time to delight in the wonders that flooded my eyes. Everywhere was colour as bright as the day they were lovingly created. Brighter than anything that I had ever seen or heard of. It was a cacophony, a riot of colourful images depicting the creation of the earth, the very land of Egypt. And it went on and on until I had lost all sense of time and proportion. 

Now up ahead I saw it, the opening into the first chamber and behind it the next then the one after, on and on like a Russian doll until finally we were there in the innermost chamber, the ultimate shrine standing before us. But what was this? I looked around confused. I looked at Bill and saw his face too and then looked at Didia and saw the inscrutable smile on his lips. There in front of us, in the carved wall stood a niche with a plinth in it. 

It was empty.

Didia held up his hand as though to fend off the many questions he knew were bubbling through us both. ‘You have come far and searched long for the answers have you not my son? You have found the scroll sent for safe keeping to the House of Judah in the land of Solomon, to lay in wait for centuries until one from the old world would recognise its worth only to perish before his triumph could be fulfilled. Destiny lay sleeping then until the time was right, until it was time for the one believer destined to find the clues that would lead to enlightenment coming forth. You have searched with a thirst for the truth and with unquestioning belief leading you to me, it was your fate and all part of your journey my son.’

He looked at Bill kindly, like the owner of a pet would look upon his beloved trusting dog disappointed when denied a walk. ‘And yet you doubted yourself when you saw or suspected the truth many weeks ago. Do not doubt yourself again, it is unworthy of you. My Lord Ptah was sent from here many aeons ago, it was deemed his time to enlighten the world, to be found by the right messenger who would know when the time is right for the mortals of this world to be shown the light.’

‘Seek the old one from the old world and keep safe the lord and the message he holds, safe until the time comes. Trust in yourself, you have the foresight to do what must be done even though the cost to you is a high price to pay. You will pay it and be rewarded when the time comes. Go now and be blessed for you are the chosen one, the goddess of the night chooses wisely and with care. Do not be afraid when the time comes to hold strong against her sway. She is death, she is eternity,’ he sagely advised. ‘The Amun comes, go quickly now.’ And with that he was gone.

Majid’s face showed relief when he saw us walking towards him. ‘You must hurry, the sun will be up shortly and you need to go to ground.’ We were both silent on the short trip back to the villa across the mighty life giving river but before going to ground Bill gave hurried instructions to our friend, imploring him to waste no time and making him promise to carry out whatever it was that he had asked. Majid promised him it would be done then finally we retired to our room, exhausted and for my part bewildered.

I woke thinking that the previous night must have been a dream, a strange and exotic vision or delusion that had overcome me but when I saw Bill’s face as he too was already awake, I knew that it was not the case. He looked tired and drawn and yet he looked at peace too. There had been times that I had thought I had caught glimmers of light from within him, a faint glow to his alabaster skin, particularly when he was charged with a high emotion, but now as I lay beside him, I saw him as though with new eyes. In the dim light of our room he glowed, his skin emitting a transparency and radiance of light. I gasped. He looked like an exulted god and I knew that he had been touched by the essence of eternal life. He had been reborn.

‘You have had news?’ I asked, a tremor in my voice. He nodded and pulled me close to him. ‘You know the truth?’ I questioned. He shook his head. ‘No but I know where the truth is to be found and have ensured its safety. Come let’s get dressed. We have to return to Marrakesh. Majid has arranged it while we slept.’ 

‘Profuse thanks will never be enough to express what you have done for me and for my people,’ Bill declared solemnly as we stood a little over and hour later on a small landing strip on the outskirts of the desert. This time there would be no leisurely cruise under the moonlight back to Cairo. Time was of the essence and Majid had taken great pains to organise a small plane to take us back to the modern capital then on to Marrakesh and whatever was to befall us. ‘May the gods protect you Guillaume,’ Majid uttered as they hugged, brothers in the struggle to preserve an ancient heritage for the entire world.

The trip back to our adopted home was not as long or as fearful as the first journey because of the route Majid had managed to cajole our pilot into undertaking. This time there was no inspection to send me into a ferment of fear. It went smoothly and within as short a space of time as possible we were landing at the airport to be met by Georges accompanied by Raoul, both men looking grim and pensive. 

‘What is it?’ Bill asked after seeing their faces, but they remained silent, casting searching looks into the shadows of the hanger and beckoning us to hurry. I had assumed that we would go immediately to Heinrich’s but instead was surprised when the car turned down the small street that ran along the rear of the Purple Veil. Still neither one of our friends spoke and my alarm increased when I saw two of George’s henchmen standing guard at the rear doorway into the club. 

It was not until we were safely seated in his office and he was certain that we had not been followed that he spoke. ‘A shipment arrived for you Britisher, one that I have taken great pains to protect as per Heinrich’s instructions.’ Bill nodded but said nothing, waiting for what I could only guess was the blow to fall. George’s eyes flitted to Bill’s resting there for some moments before glancing hurriedly at me and then back to Bill. ‘That was the last that we have heard from Heinrich for several days. My notes have gone unanswered.’

My heart lurched, a fear running through me, making my palms sweat and flooding me with visions that had dragged me into a deep dark place of dread. Suddenly a veil was lifted from my eyes and the taste of the potion the village shaman had given me turned bitter in my mouth as I recalled from my lost memory a face of horror and a time of distress. Why had I not seen it before, why had I not recognised the features of the face that had scared me so much, was it a mask that had been worn to hide the hideous apparition or was it the drug of the potion that had left my memory so shattered that I had not recognised the truth? 

‘We must go,’ my voice was clear, dripping with fear and anxiety as I got up and ran to Bill’s side. ‘Yes my love, it is time,’ he said sadly. Did he know, had he too seen the future and suspected what was to come? 

There was a moment when he had knelt at the feet of Didia, a split second in time when I had been merely a witness and not a participant to the two of them, one kneeling at the other’s feet, when I had thought that he had blessed Bill, waved his hand over his bowed head in a gesture for what I did not know. Was that it, was that when he gave Bill the power of insight or was it acknowledgement that he had always had it in him and merely confirmation and affirmation of his abilities. I did not know, all I knew at that moment was that somehow Bill had seen the future as I had when I drank the Shaman’s potion and he knew what was to come, but where I was grief stricken by it, he was resigned to it. 

‘Where is it?’ Bill asked in a cool voice that hid the true emotions I felt running through him. Georges indicated a door to the left of his desk, one that I had always assumed led to a small bathroom. Bill got up and gestured for me to stay. Because my love and trust in him was complete I acquiesced to his wishes and sat waiting mutely, lost to my thoughts until he returned. 

‘Keep it secret and keep it safe until I return. And if I don’t return then hide it well, this is what I ask you to do. Can you do it?’ The club owner nodded. ‘It will be safe, you have my word.’

That was all that was spoken before we left arm in arm to follow our destiny.


	19. Chapter 19

The night was dark with no wind, not even a breath of air stirred as we made our way silently through the darkened streets and the labyrinth of passage ways that were now so familiar to us both. When we turned into Heinrich’s lane way everything looked as it normally would. There was no trace of anything untoward showing. There were no dark shapes lurking in the shadows, no cloaked and armed marauders or groups of darkly suited men with armbands that stood out brightly with their crooked spider insignia. All looked as it had looked for decades, peaceful, even rustic with the big ornately carved doorways gaining entrance to the many villas dotted along the narrow way. But we both knew better than to be lulled into a false sense of security.

The moment that Bill moved the great wrought iron handle on the ancient lock and the front door opened easily, we were on our guard. Still, as we stepped softly into the foyer of Heinrich’s home, there was nothing to indicate anything amiss. All looked as it had done when we left, with one exception. Heinrich was not in sight to greet us nor was his manservant. 

We stood for a moment waiting expectantly, hoping beyond hope that our fears were unfounded, but to no avail. Nothing stirred. ‘Wait here,’ Bill’s voice was no more than a silent whisper in my ear as he passed me and made his way up the carpeted staircase to the older vampire’s office. After some few moments his head appeared over the balcony railing and looking up I saw him hold his fingers to his mouth to warn me to keep silent, then he shook his head at my unspoken question. Heinrich was not upstairs in his room as we had expected him to be. 

Silently he came back down and came to my side. He stood for a moment still as a statue then sniffed. His eyes shone blue with anticipation and he looked at me, leaning down to my face and brushing his lips against mine tenderly before he took my hand in his and we walked into the main salon, Heinrich’s precious drawing room crammed full of all his treasures and knick knacks. As I stood looking to the left of me I was puzzled. There was something different about the room, something not quite as it had been but I couldn’t place what it was. 

As we turned to look around the rest of the room, there sitting on the very seat that Bill and I had first sat on together what seemed a life time ago now, was Heinrich, and next to him was Raymondo.

‘Bill, Fabienne, welcome back. This is a pleasant surprise. We were not expecting you so soon,’ Raymondo ventured to exclaim in mock surprise. ‘You did not tell me you were leaving the city, or where you were going,’ he said almost as an admonishment, like he was speaking to two wayward children caught leaving the grounds of their school without permission. ‘Come, tell me all about your trip. Where did you go? Was it a pleasant journey? I hope that it was,’ he hesitated as though picking what he thought to be the most appropriate phrase, ‘I hope it was educational at least.’

All the while as he spoke, I had the feeling that we were under an intense scrutiny. Every mannerism, every blink of an eye was being analysed by the oily vampire. From Heinrich though there was no reaction, he did not stir nor move even one muscle. It was as though he had been turned to stone. He could not and would not meet my eyes, and he kept his gaze averted from our faces. 

Raymondo’s words, although casual enough, gave me the feeling of being a mouse caught in the gaze of a hungry cat that was merely waiting to pounce. An underlying feeling of menace pervaded his every pore. When neither of us answered he went on. ‘Come, why so formal my friends. I have been so looking forward to your return with the greatest of anticipation.’

Bill gave my hand a minuscule squeeze and through our bond, enhanced now as it was by the powers that I suspected to be flowing through him since what I came to think of as Didia’s blessing, a newly found confidence and belief in himself emanated from him and I found myself reassured and prepared to follow his lead, whatever that may be. 

He stepped forward and smiled, never letting go of my hand. It gave me reassurance and confidence in him regardless of how suspicious I was feeling of the little Spaniard.  
‘We have been to Egypt,’ he declared, his honesty surprising not only me but Raymondo and Heinrich too, who for the first time since we had entered the room, showed an actual sign of emotion, it was fear. The look of alarm was only fleeting and as Raymondo had stood and taken a step closer to Bill, leaving Heinrich sitting there behind him, the look went unseen by our adversary. I say that because by now I was sure that is what he was. 

‘Egypt,’ he gasped, ‘you have found the truth?’ he barked out, a light in his eyes of exultation that was to flicker and die just as quickly as it appeared when Bill shook his head. ‘No my friend, the answer to our question was not to be found there.’ Raymondo scoffed. ‘Come, do you really expect me to believe that you did not find it, that the Ankh of Ptah was not there in Egypt? You lie!’ His accusation was like a declaration of hostility between two warring parties. ‘Who said anything about the Ankh of Ptah?’ Bill said calmly, only I knew there to be an icy note in his voice and I looked at him then looked at Raymondo’s face.

‘Do you really think that I am that stupid? That the Authority does not know that it is the Ankh that holds the secret of where we come from?’ I looked on with horror not at Raymondo’s face but behind him at Heinrich and recognised betrayal written all over the old face that was so much like a Father to me. ‘No,’ I cried out, ‘you didn’t! But why?’ I could not bring myself to believe that despite our reservations regarding Raymondo’s motives, Heinrich had disclosed our precious speculations to the oily little vampire. ‘Fabienne my daughter,’ he despaired as he looked back at me, ‘you don’t understand, I had to, he gave me no choice.’

Suddenly there was a flash of movement and before Bill or I could do anything, Raymondo was holding a wicked looking dagger to Heinrich’s throat, the curved blade of silver already burning his skin hideously as he held the obscenely ferocious looking jet and gold handle pressing upwards at an angle that I knew one false move and my Heinrich would be dead. ‘Tell me what you found or he will meet the sun,’ Raymondo threatened. 

‘The Authority are desperate to know the truth. They think that they are the only ones to guard the secrets of our race,’ Heinrich gasped as the knife pressed closer to his skin, burning and rendering him incapable of fighting back. ‘It was my life or yours, my precious Fabienne, Raymondo works for the Authority. They have spies everywhere. It was them that sent those lapdogs to the club, not the little man in Berlin.’

He went on desperately with his dialogue, pouring out what he had learnt in the time since we had left and Raymondo had turned ugly in his desperation. ‘The minions are nothing but lackeys and know nothing and neither does he. They do not know why it is precious; they are only searching because they believe it to be a treasure worth a Pharaoh’s ransom in gold. They do not have any real idea of the truth. They were falsely promised the secrets of immortality, and like fools they believed that if they found it they would become invincible, but they have been tricked and used as cat’s paws. It is the Authority who are to be held accountable. At all costs they are the ones that have deemed themselves, and only themselves, to be the rightful owners of our destiny. Roman…’ 

‘Shut up you old fool,’ Raymondo hissed at him. ‘What do you know of Roman and what gives you the right to be the judge of our leadership, you who fled the old world and the old ways. You have no right to sit in judgement of one whose knowledge and wisdom guides us and will continue to guide us for millenniums to come.’ His voice rang with the loyalty of a fanatic, someone who was a true believer of a faith that was possibly no more than a cult. 

‘I have known Roman for centuries,’ he went on, ‘have seen him grow in power and wisdom, have walked beside him in the darkness that was the old days when we were persecuted and burnt at the stake for being different. But then slowly, as his power grew, and more and more of us found each other in the old world, he stood out as a shining example of leadership. He will lead us and the Authority to a brave new world of domination and then we shall see what destiny has in store for us.’ His eyes shone with the light of one that does not see reality but is lit from within by a belief so strong as to be impossible to sustain. 

Bill had told me once that vampires that live together, after a time, become mean and cruel. He said it was something to do with living in a nest that affected some and that is why he preferred to be on his own. He had been given a small taste of it when living with Lorena his maker, and it still left a bitterness and regret in him for the actions that he had committed whilst under its influence.

Perhaps this was what the Authority was like, I didn’t know, I wasn’t sure. Bill had made reference to a higher power within the vampire hierarchy in the old world but he had not gone into too much detail and I, like the fool that I was, had not questioned him. I had not thought that it would ever be of my concern to learn the intricacies of such things, never dreaming that I would have need to. Now I was regretting my lack of foresight and knowledge about such matters. Never the less, from what Heinrich had just disclosed, I didn’t really need to know much more for it was obvious that when we had thought our greatest threat had come from humans seeking the treasure of the ancients, we were very much sadly mistaken. It was from within that the true danger came.

‘You forget Raymondo, I too come from the old world and I know Roman, not as well perhaps as you do but well enough to know that he is a reasonable creature, a creature of vision, and even though I have no doubts that he wants this for the Authority, I do not and cannot believe that he would stoop so low as to threaten me or to threaten a harmless woman such as Fabienne. No, I stand here and accuse you of such heinous actions, not Roman nor the Authority,’ Heinrich declared.

‘Heinrich is right Raymondo,’ Bill spoke quietly to him, ‘after all we all want the same thing, we all want to find out where we came from and why. This is not a competition nor is it a race to see who is first to find some hidden treasure. We are vampire,’ he said with dignity, ‘we are of the same people, the same blood. There is no need for this.’ His voice was the voice of reason. I could see why Didia had pronounced him to have a great future as a leader, a conciliatory representative for his kind in a world where actions spoke louder than words but were often regretted for years to come. 

I held my breath waiting as I read Raymondo’s face while he digested Bill’s speech. ‘Tell me what you found in Egypt Bill or he will die. I swear this to you, he will meet the sun and his blood will be on your hands.’ Bill shook his head in sorrow and sighed. The hope that he had held within him for a peaceful conclusion to this sad scene he now knew was not going to happen, his hopes were dashed and his fears realised.

With his and my fate written, his destiny before him, he spoke. ‘I found nothing, the temple was empty, the secret was already gone,’ Bill whispered, looking sadly at Heinrich, unspoken words left hanging in the air. ‘It’s true, I was there and it was empty, there was nothing there to find Raymondo,’ I cried, tears streaming down my face now, ‘please you must believe us,’ I pleaded. 

For one fraction of a second I thought that he faltered in his conviction, that he would change his mind and release Heinrich but then just as suddenly, I saw his face change and a new thought cross his mind, and that was when I knew that my fears, the visions I had seen with the aid of the Shaman’s potion, were to become a reality. 

The knife slipped into the soft flesh before we could do anything. I could hear screaming in my ears and only when I felt the iron grip of Raymondo’s steel like hands around my throat did I realise that it was me that the sounds were coming from. Pulling me away from Bill, I was thankful that I could not see what had become of Heinrich, my surrogate Father. Instead all I could see was Bill standing before us, his face ashen, a sickly green hue enveloping his skin but his eyes, his eyes blazed out bluer than I had ever seen them to be before. 

‘I am older and I am stronger than you Bill. Do not think for one minute that I will stop at anything if you do not do as I say.’ Raymondo’s voice hissed at him. ‘I believe you when you say that it was not there, that you found the temple empty, but you are too valuable to our cause to lose. There is something about you that is intertwined with our destiny, I know it and so does Roman. He told me this before I left Paris. I do not know how he knows it but I have faith in his knowledge. I promise you that no harm will come to Fabienne if you do what I say. If you do not,’ he shrugged, ‘then I cannot guarantee that she will live to see her children or her children’s children. Am I clear?’

Bill said nothing but merely nodded. ‘Good then we have an understanding. You will leave Marrakesh with me tonight. You will come before the Authority and be given your assignment, whatever that may be. You will be working for us now. For as long as you do as is asked of you, your precious Fabienne will be safe. But,’ he paused and that was when I saw it all, as I had seen it in my vision and knew what was to come, ‘but if you ever attempt to contact her, in any way, she will meet her death. Do you understand and agree?’

Bill looked at Raymondo, not taking his eyes for one moment from his. ‘Before I give you my answer I would ask you but one favour.’ Raymondo raised his eyebrows, ‘You are asking me for a favour?’ Bill nodded, ‘Yes. If I am to agree then I would ask that you allow me to say goodbye to Fabienne in private. I swear to you that I will come with you and do as you ask if you will allow me this. You have my word as a vampire that I will not attempt to escape nor will I allow Fabienne to leave unless it is with your permission. I am a man of my word Raymondo.’

The vampire loosened his grip on my throat and moved his hands down to hold me by the wrists. I could not have escaped from his vice like grip even if I had tried but I didn’t try and had no intentions of trying, Bill’s words had made it very clear to me that this was to be our fate and even though the hurt and pain of our parting tore through me, I knew that it was useless to fight it. ‘You have one hour, no more.’ ‘Thank you for your generosity,’ Bill nodded and calmly walked over to me and took my hand then led me upstairs to Heinrich’s office. 

Even now my friends, as I look back through the years to that dreadful moment, I still cannot put into words that last hour of our parting. When we lose someone to death, after a time no matter how long it is, one day we suddenly realise that we can see their face or remember their voice and no longer cry but are able to smile again once more, and remember the happy times. The grief and the longing, it is still there but we are able to live again little by little, drop by drop. 

For me, even though my time with Bill was years ago now, my grief remains with me, like a scar that has never healed, a cloak around my heart that is forever impenetrable.  
I can tell you some of that last hour, the moments that we spent in each other’s arms, his tears mingling with mine as we clung to the precious seconds ticking slowly away. I can speak as he spoke to me of our quest, for that is what it had become for both of us, and for Heinrich. I can say the words that Bill, my Guillaume said to me without crying, but with the trust and belief that I had in him still shining through me. They were to be his last words to me before telling me farewell.

‘There will come a time my darling, dearest Fabienne,’ he whispered to me, ‘when we will be able to reveal to the world what we are but not now, not yet. One day when we have been accepted into the world, and Fabienne that day will come, I just don’t know when but when it does, when they are ready for the truth; that is when I will tell them, tell the whole world. And they will see the truth, but not yet, they are not ready yet.’

‘But my darling, how do you know that you will be believed, what makes you so confident?’ I had asked. ‘Fabienne my precious heart, I have it, I have the Ankh of Ptah. And the paintings in the caves; the swimmers looking in wonder, they too give credence to the Ankh and what it decrees.’ I remember now so clearly how I had gasped. ‘You have it? But how, I thought it was not there, there was nothing there.’

He laughed. ‘Fabienne my sweet, it was there, all along it was there right under our noses. It was in the base of the statue of Ptah in Heinrich’s drawing room. I instructed Majid to cable Heinrich and prayed that he would have time to send it safely on to Georges. I have it now and it is safe,’ he sighed.

‘Didia was right when he said that I had seen or suspected the truth for a while. Right from the first night that we met, when I walked into Heinrich’s drawing room as I gazed around looking at all his artefacts, I was drawn to the statue. There was something not quite right about it to me, something strange. I had asked him at the time where he had come by it and you know the odd thing about it?’ he looked at me questioningly as I shook my head breathlessly waiting for him to tell me, ‘Heinrich told me that he had no idea where it came from.’ 

‘He had received a package and when he opened it there it was. He had even thought at one point that I had sent it to him but I hadn’t. I think Didia had foresight and somehow knew that we were destined to search together, to undertake this quest. It was him that determined that the time was right for beginning of the truth and he manipulated a series of events that led me to it. He was a lot more than a high priest, like the shaman of the village, he saw the future, or he made the future or both.’

‘You have seen it, the Ankh of Ptah? You know the answer to our question?’ I asked him but already knew from the change that I could feel within him the answer to my question. He was a creature that had searched for the meaning to a riddle as old, no older than the Sphinx really, and had found the answer.

I still feel the awe that pervaded me when he quoted to me the glyphs written so long ago by a priest with the foresight to inscribe the unimaginable. My eyes filled with wonder at what he told me, and from that day on my life and the way that I looked at the world was never to be the same again.

‘So you see now why the only way for me to keep you safe is to stay away, you do know that don’t you? They do not know that I have the knowledge of our creation in my hands but they know that I have been touched by powers stronger than even Roman or the Authority could ever imagine and that is why I am so valuable to them. If we were together I would always be a danger to you, I could never be sure that I could keep you completely safe and if anything ever happened to you,’ his mouth quivered and his eyes became bloody with tears at the thought, ‘I would never forgive myself my precious love,’ he whispered.

‘I have work to do now for the Authority but no matter where I go or what I am doing,’ he gently stroked the miniature Ankh earrings that I wore and had not taken off since the night he had given them to me as he spoke, ‘you know that I will always be with you.’

‘And we will always have the Oasis.’


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we have come to the end of our little journey back in time to another place and a past chapter in Bill's existence. 
> 
> I would sincerely like to thank those of you who have come along for the ride for the past almost three years, waiting patiently for the end of this little fic. It has been written, just not posted.
> 
> I hope that it has not disappointed you in any way but my intentions right from the start were to give some kind of solace to our beloved vamp after what he had been through since being turned and before his return to Bon Temps. 
> 
> It was also written to give a possible answer to the question that I and I am sure others, including Bill, may have asked many times before.... where do Vampires come from and how did they came to be in existence. 
> 
> Whether or not you agree or disagree with what I have devised, there is one thing for sure - I am grateful for all the encouragement, kind and thoughtful feedback that you have so generously given. 
> 
> Many thanks to all again and remember.... nothing is closed to an open mind.

Epilogue

August 2011 Bon Temps LA

Compton Royal Mansion

Bill was sitting in his in his office contemplating how to handle the many issues that were plaguing him at the time. The situation with Marnie and her coven, the situation with Eric - always a thorn in his side, the situation with Nan - keeping secret from her that he was really working for the Authority and had been for decades under the direct orders of Roman, not to mention the ongoing situation with Sookie that always cloaked him in a deep veil of sorrow and misgiving. All of his many troubles weighed heavily on Bill’s shoulders. The only bright spot on his dark horizon was Jessica. 

He never would have thought that at his age, after for so long missing his children, his human children, he would become a father again and love it as much as he did. And that is how he did see himself, as a father to Jessica, and as time went on his pride in her grew as they grew closer. She was the daughter that he had never had the chance to see grow into a mature and beautiful woman. She was everything that he had hoped Sarah would turn out to be, well other than vampire of course. He would never wish this existence on anyone that he loved and cherished. 

There was a knock at the door and speak of the devil, Jessica poked her head in. ‘Are you busy Bill?’ she asked as she walked into the room carrying a package. ‘I found this out on the hall table; it must have come for you this afternoon while we were gone to ground.’ She hugged him when she walked around to where he was sitting behind his desk and put the package down next to his mouse pad. It was a complimentary gift from the makers of True Blood and always amused him when he looked at it, the bottle of the life giving substance depicted on it had changed his and his kind’s lives and he was grateful to the scientists that had developed it. The artwork that included an overly exaggerated set of fangs and blood drips didn’t do too much for him but no doubt someone had spent hours of their time creating what they thought best represented True Blood and vampires and he could at least appreciate that. 

Bill and his computer she thought to herself, who would have thought that he would be so computer savvy? He loved modern technology, he embraced it whole heartedly. If she didn’t know better she would even go as far as to think that he was a geek but no, she thought, he is really too cool to be a nerd, just look at the suits he had been getting tailored made since he became King and the leather jacket and jeans, even if he was her Dad and maker she knew that he was smoking. He looked so hot and so regal, she thought to herself, proud to be his progeny and daughter.

‘So, who do you know in France?’ she asked curiously as she noticed the postage label in French. 

Bill gave a bit of a start and raised his eyebrows. France, surely that could mean only one thing. A face flashed through his mind, a soft accented and passionate voice whispering his name as the desert winds kissed his skin, the moonlight and the Oasis all flitted into his being all at the mere mention of France.

‘I have old friends over in Paris,’ he frowned. ‘Bill, what’s the matter? Are you all right?’ Jess asked concerned. She could tell by the look on his face that he was either worried or very distracted or both. She knew him well now and cared deeply for him and could now read him like a book. Their blood bond aside, he was the Father that she had wished she had in her human life, he was everything to her and she did not want to see him anything but happy. He had been through enough in his existence already.

He had a faraway look on his face and didn’t answer her immediately. ‘Bill, what is it?’ she asked again. ‘I’m sorry,’ he smiled a little, ‘what were you saying?’ he asked distractedly. ‘Bill are you okay, you look upset?’ Patting her face as he got up, he hugged her and this surprised her. ‘Jessica, you know that I am proud of you don’t you?’ ‘I know Bill and I love you too but what is wrong, is it Sookie?’ Jessica was suspecting yet another hurt to Bill’s already torn heart and could not help wishing that he had never laid eyes on her. Didn’t she see the goodness in him, the loyalty, the unspoken love that he had for her? She sighed at the thought of some new pain that she may have caused, was it never ending?

‘Jessica, no honestly it’s nothing. I was just remembering an old friend and something we had once shared.’ ‘In France, in Paris?’ Jessica asked her interest peaked. ‘I have always wanted to go there, to Paris, I want to go to Père Lachaise Cemetery.’ Bill’s looked totally surprised, gaining his full attention now at the mention of the famous cemetery. ‘Why there?’ he asked side-tracked for a moment. ‘Because that is where…’ ‘That is where Jim Morrison is buried,’ he finished her sentence. ‘It sure is,’ she nodded enthusiastically, ‘he was hot and besides that he was a poet and a singer and really deep and …’ Bill laughed softly despite himself, ‘And I take it you like him?’ ‘Hell yes,’ she enthused. ‘I once saw him play at the Whisky A Go Go in LA back in the day,’ he informed her. ‘No, you didn’t! Get out!’ she exclaimed. She was thrilled. ‘Oh Bill tell me about it.’ ‘I will I promise but not right now. I have work to get on with.’

She looked disappointed. ‘Jess I promise I will if you are really interested,’ he said still doubting that she was really interested and she was not just saying it to please her old man. He smiled at her. ‘Now enough of this, I am sure that you don’t really want sit here and hear me reminisce about the old days. You run along, you have things you need to be doing I am sure,’ and reaching out he put his arm around her and walked her to the door, kissing the top of her head. She took the hint, he was busy but that was okay, she knew that she would get it out of him one day and smiled as she left. Wow, Jim Morrison, who would have thought she was saying to herself as she sped upstairs to get changed and go out for the night.

Once alone, Bill sat down at his desk and picked up the package she had left on his desk. He sat for some time holding it, looking at it as though he was loath to open it for fear of what it might contain. Of all the times, this was perhaps one of the worst times to have received this but then again, is there ever a good time for news that is inevitable, that you know will come sooner or later but still you are reluctant to acknowledge. He knew he couldn’t put it off, he had to face his fears so, opening it he hastily read the letter attached before opening a thick and worn black leather bound note book flicking indiscriminately through the faded journal. 

Opening it at a random page, the words in the distinctive script flew out at him from the page:

“I am so excited by what I have found. I can’t wait to tell Bill and Heinrich but ha, I might keep it from them for just a little while longer until I am sure this will substantiate our theories then, what exultation I will have producing my little piece of information. I can’t be wrong; it is written in ancient times that Hathor, beloved wife of Ptah, was created by her father Re as Sekhmet, to be the destroyer of men who disobey him. When he changed his mind so great was her blood lust and her thirst to do right that nothing could stop her from killing men until he disguised beer as blood and she became drunk then could no longer kill. From then on she was known as the goddess of love but still… there is was, Ptah’s wife and love and her blood lust against mankind in an effort to appease her father, the one god of all things. There has to be a connection, something more than just a myth….” 

Bill shook his head and remembered the excitement in her voice when she had told him of her find, how she trembled with anticipation and hope that she had found something of importance. He could still see her eyes sparkling with a fire that burnt brightly as she relayed the information she had found in the library. It was another piece of the puzzle that had fitted in and she was enthralled by it. 

He sat holding the age worn book and skimmed this and that entry, each one bringing back more than just a memory, each word emoting sights and sounds, fragrances and experiences that he had locked away long ago to be treasured but too painful to open and re-examine in detail.

“I am in a world of entire happiness like nothing that I have ever experienced before,” Bill read, Fabienne’s words reaching out to him. “My beloved Heinrich, my surrogate father that I love so very dearly, that I owe so very much to, and not just for his kindness to me since I lost my Papa, but for saving my dear one in the first place. Heinrich knows of and approves of my love for my Bill. How can I even tell him how very much this means to me, how very much both of them and my love for them, and theirs for me, have made me complete when I was lost and alone. These two creatures of the night that so many would condemn to the eternal pits of hell without a thought, they are so just and so fair. Compared to the horrors of Europe how can any one person have the right to judge those that they know nothing of. What makes some so pious in their judgement when they have not walked in their shoes? I will never understand this of my fellow man. I will never accept the hypocrisy of those holier than though attitudes. No, for me Heinrich and Bill will always be my savours for what they have given me, a chance at life ….”

Bill could not stop reading, for hour upon hour he sat there drinking in the words and emotions that each new entry washed over him. He slid back in time to that other place, those other faces and places that were gone now but remained forever with him. 

“I stood upon the threshold of a brand new world and am ashamed to say that I faltered. Just for one split second a fear rose up within me that froze my heart and my soul. I thought that it was the fear for mankind, for my kind that I felt but as I sit and write this I realise that I was wrong. It was baser than that. It was more personal and definitely selfish.   
I feared for my love of my Bill and what we had together, that somehow this monumental discovery would change everything and that somehow we would be torn apart, he going his way and leaving me to going back to my other world of beige colourless dreariness that was the place in the world I had always known. It was selfish of me I know but I couldn’t get past that thought of losing my Guillaume. He was the reason for my existence and without him I faced a life of monotonous and pitiable tedium waiting to die alone, as dried up as a Mummy in a tomb of lifeless dust that my life would be without him. I wanted to believe that this beautiful creature would not leave me if things changed but it wasn’t him that I was doubting nor his love for me, it was my own inherent disbelief that I would or could ever be so deserving of someone as magnificent as Bill. Then he came to me and I felt the love and understanding pouring from him and was engulfed by his generosity if spirit, and I knew then that no matter how undeserving I felt myself to be, that was not how he felt. I felt his heart and soul and found the strength that I needed to go on. So we walked down the corridor to our fate together arm in arm, following Didia like two disciples following their master teacher ….”

Bill flicked over more pages, reading this passage and that but it was to be the next entry that he read that was to be his undoing, to touch him with a sense of grief and loss for himself and for Fabienne and for things that under different circumstances may have been so different if fate had not been as cruel or unjust or random. 

“We talked today of so many things, my Guillaume - my Bill telling me of his sorrow for his lost children. I told him that I would love children, his children, my want and need to give him a child firing my heart and belly each time we made love, praying with all my heart and soul that we would be blessed with a child each and every time we lay together despite the shame it would bring to me being an unmarried mother. I care too much and am so very in love that I would gladly where a sign around my neck proclaiming my lack of chastity rather than be ashamed of my love for my Bill and any child that we were to be blessed with but that was when the truth dawned on me like a crushing weight. That is when he told me. I had not known in my naïveté. He said he could now not have children. I had been puzzled and had spluttered awkwardly, embarrassed at the frank turn in the conversation I was about to take, exclaiming to him ‘but, but you …. I mean you do…?’ I trailed off unable to finish, my face hot and red at the thought of the very private and intimate detail I was referring to. ‘Yes, yes I do don’t I?’ he had smiled a small satisfied smile, pleased with himself and his manly prowess but then a sadness descended upon him as he said as gently as he could, ‘But Fabienne my precious love, it is not the same.’ He regretfully went on. ‘There is no life in it.’ A piece of my heart broke for him and for me. If only we could have conceived, what joy, what a gift for us both to have …”

A small sob strangled in Bill’s throat and the rest of the words blurred as his tears that had been unshed at the news in the accompanying letter now streaked down his face.   
The letter had come from Guillaume, Fabienne’s son, named after him as a way of keeping his name and her love for him close to her yet unspoken, as it must be. After some years of loneliness and grieving for Bill she had married and ironically it was to Raoul, the maître de of The Purple Veil. They had formed a friendship of sorts during her time with Bill, more out of the situation that they were all faced with at the time and the fight that they all faced as exiled country men and women. After the war, they had met up again when she had returned to Paris, Marrakesh holding only painful memories of Bill and Heinrich and all that she had lost. 

Raoul had been kind to her and they had spent many happy years of companionship together. He knew that she had lost the great love of her life, the Britisher, when he had been lost in a plane crash, shot down over enemy territory in some secret mission he had been led to believe, but he hoped that he could at least give her friendship and perhaps more if she could find it in her heart to accept it. 

They had been blessed with a son, Guillaume Jean Paul and a daughter whom she had named Kceniya Zuzana in tribute to their close friends and now business partners in a cooking school they had also opened in Paris with Claude and Kceniya. They had opened a restaurant as a side line to the school and she had retired from the antiques business, wanting to distance herself as far as possible from any links that may arouse suspicion and remind those unnamed ones of any link to her and Bill. She was as fearful for his safety as he was for hers. And so she had become a culinary expert, excellent cook, restaurant owner and everything that they had done had been a great success.   
The letter had told Bill of her death. 

Guillaume had said that she had not suffered at the very end but had died peacefully in her sleep with her husband, her children and her grandchildren around her, clutching a golden necklace in her hand that she had taken to holding as her days in pain towards the end became too much for her to bear. Next to her pillow on her night stand, amongst the bottles and ampoules of relief giving morphine, a framed photo of Bill stood within her blurred eyesight. Raoul understood and knew he had been blessed to share a small part of this incredible woman’s life with him and held no resentment towards either Fabienne or Bill. How could he when he held Bill in nothing but the highest admiration for what he saw him as – a hero of the war and one of its many casualties.

Before her death she had entrusted her journal to her precious son to be passed on to Bill when the time came. She had also asked that she be buried with one of a matching pair of earrings that she always wore; the other was to be sent on with the journal. She had been insistent about this and had said that they were the most treasured of all her possessions and that Bill would know what to do. Her necklace she left to her daughter Kceniya, telling her that it was a symbol of love and all good things that life could bring.

Unwrapping a small square of tissue paper, Bill looked down and smiled. Holding it in his hand he gently fingered a small golden ankh, one of the pair that he had given her so long ago along with a framed photo taken back in the Marrakesh days. She had promised that she would wear them until they were together again or parted only from each other by death. She had said that she would never forget him, would always remember her life starting from that night in his arms when they had found each other and she had been born again.

Bill nodded to himself and carefully replaced the ankh in the scrap of paper along with the framed photo that Guillaume had also enclosed before unlocking his wall safe to place it carefully, along with the journal, next to a framed picture of Sookie and himself and then locked it again. Walking back to his desk he turned and for a brief moment gazed at a statue sitting on his shelf. He smiled to himself. 

‘One day,’ he had said out aloud as though speaking to Fabienne ‘one day when the world is ready … it is closer, but not yet close enough. We have taken the first small step, they know of our existence and one day when they have accepted us they will learn the truth of where we came from, us children of the stars and the universe.’   
Quietly to himself he spoke the words that were written so long ago and that only Fabienne had heard since those days long ago. He had memorised them and carried them in his head and heart with him never to be revealed until the time was right. 

His mind flew back to the first time he had gazed upon the Ankh in the small bathroom off George’s office in the Purple Veil in Marrakesh.

Ptah, god who shaped the world, beloved husband of goddess the Sekhmet/Hathor, the beloved wife of Ptah, god who shaped the world - keep safe the secrets of your divine mistress. Oh Hathor mistress of the tomb, gracious one, destroyer of rebellion, mighty one of enchantments, come forth upon the earth to avenge the rebellious, those who rebel against your father Ra the Sun. Nu the divine father of the primordial waters sends you upon this task. Go forth draped in a cloak of blood and reap your vengeance for you are a child of the stars descending from your home in the heavens far, far away. You are the night, you are the coming of death and all eternity. You are justice. May you begot many children upon the earth and lead your progeny through all eternity. Go forth and harvest your magic for death is only the beginning and your home in the stars awaits your return. 

‘Death is only the beginning, my darling precious Fabienne.’

The statue of the God Ptah sat waiting patiently as it had over the aeons, its inscrutable smile now matched only by the one on Bill’s face. Around the bottom of the base, as though inscribed for his own benefit, written in a hand that Bill knew only too well, was the following inscription, it summed it all up for him:

Take me to my destiny, it is written in the sands and in the stars above from which Hathor beloved wife of her protector Ptah, mother goddess of earthly offspring and all our kind descends, for nothing is closed to an open mind.


	21. Chapter 21

To my Darling Fabienne 

          Always

   Your Guillaume


End file.
